Operation Wings
by Alaska829Snow
Summary: There's only one way for Tinkerbell to earn back her wings: complete the task of finding Regina's soul mate. Swan Queen, Post-Neverland.
1. Chapter 1

**This story has been dancing around in my head for a while. I hope you like it :) It will be a shorter story (closer in lenght to The Landing Spot than the Last Resort). As awlays: FlyYouFools is the besttttt beta ever! xo-Dakota**

* * *

"Seriously?!"

Tinkerbell rolled her eyes, trying her best not to slap the Fairy standing in front of her. This confrontation was years in the making—she had thought about it, dreamt about it.

But, like so many things in her life, it wasn't going at all as she had imagined.

"I'm afraid I'm quite serious, Green."

"You're telling me that's the _only _way to get my wings back?"

"That's how you lost them in the first place, isn't it?" Blue questioned, in the condescending tone Tink remembered oh so well. "On your suicide mission, trying to help the Evil Queen?"

"Let's be clear: I lost my wings because _you _took them away. And maybe, just maybe, Regina wouldn't have become the Evil Queen if more people were willing to help her!"

"You lost your wings trying to find Regina's soul mate—they will return when that task is complete. You were so determined to succeed before, I'm sure you won't mind trying again."

"Seriously?!" Tink repeated, even louder this time. "You've _got_ to be fucking kidding me_."_

* * *

Tink promised that she would give Regina all of the details immediately after her visit with Blue. But as she walked into the mansion at 108 Mifflin Street, she sincerely wished she had never told her friend about the meeting in the first place.

"What happened?" Reginaasked in greeting."How did it go?"

"Oh—it went amazing," she sassed. "We're_ totally _best friends and we're going to fly off into the sunset together now that I have my wings back."

"That well, huh?"

"I really don't like that woman." Tink sat down at the kitchen table and vented her frustrations. "I mean, who died and made her queen of the fairies, anyway?"

"She is _not_ a queen," Regina corrected, also taking a seat. "But if you'd like to know where she got that patronizing attitude, I'm guessing it was from her good friend Snow White."

"Where do I get my membership card for the 'I hate Snow' club? Because I'm ready to sign up."

"There aren't cards, as I've been the only member for the past three decades."

"It's been three decades and you haven't even made membership cards yet? What _have _you been doing in this town?"

"_Tinkerbell_," Regina sighed, clearly requesting a more serious attitude. "What, exactly, did Blue say?"

The last thing Tink wanted was to put pressure on Regina. She wished, more than anything, she could come up with a believable lie.

But she had absolutely nothing.

"You don't want to know; trust me."

"Yes, I do," the brunette rebutted. "I want to know so I can decide whether I need to kick her ass."

There was no use fighting it—the former queen would find out one way or the other.

"She said I have to find your soul mate—because looking for him is how I lost my wings in the first place."

"Please," Regina scoffed. "She only said that because she knows it's an impossible task."

"Not that I doubt she would pull something like that—and not that I doubt it would be extremely difficult - but why do you think it's _impossible_? We got pretty damn close once before."

"Do you really think I spent 28 years alone in this town and never bothered to check if anyone was sporting a lion tattoo on their wrist? The man you brought me to that night isn't in Storybrooke. And if he didn't come over with the curse—he's either in another realm or long dead."

"Right," Tinkerbell frowned. "I guess that's true."

"And, frankly, I find it a little hard to believe he was ever supposed to be my soul mate. If I _had_ gone in to meet him, I never would've had Henry. I believe, more than anything, that Henry was always a part of my destiny."

This, the Fairy knew, was a valid point. And it only served to corroborate a theory she had considered once before.

"What if the pixie dust was wrong?"

"_You _were the one who told me it could never fail."

"But what if Blue did something to it? To, like, throw us off track? She knew I was determined to help you. And she _hated _you and your mother."

"I suppose it's possible."

"So, maybe your_ real_ soul mate is somewhere in Storybrooke?"

"Maybe I no longer believe in soul mates," Regina confessed, her hopelessness apparent.

"You won't let me try?"

"I will help you in whatever way I can. But I'm concerned that Blue is sending you on a wild goose chase."

"Fuck her," Tinkerbell muttered, realizing that the possibility was quite real. "Fuck me."

"We can find another way to get your wings back. I'll talk to Gold; I'll make whatever deal I have to."

"Deals with the Dark One aren't worth it—I can live without my wings—it's not a life-or-death situation."

"But you shouldn't have to. You shouldn't have lost them in the first place."

"And you shouldn't have been married off to some King," Tink added. "Things clearly don't always go how they should."

"I can't argue with that."

"I don't want to think about this anymore," she placed her head in her hands, feeling the beginning of a headache coming on. "Can we have a girl's night tonight? I need a distraction."

"I have Henry this evening—but you're welcome to come to dinner."

"No offense—but that's _so_ not the kind of night I was talking about. I was thinking a little less domesticity and a lot more alcohol."

"I'm sorry to disappoint, but my time with Henry comes first."

"Well, Mommy Regina, could I at least get some coffee? And a place to hang out until he comes home?"

"Yes," her friend nodded. "Yes, of course."

* * *

About an hour later, Tinkerbell and Regina heard the front door open.

"Hello?" The latter called out, making it obvious she was not expecting anyone. "Henry?"

"No, it's me," Emma Swan appeared in the kitchen seconds later. "Sorry, the door was unlocked."

"Is everything alright?" Regina inquired with concern. "You seem off."

The accusation was warranted; Tink also thought Emma looked anxious and unsure. The Savior stood awkwardly with her hands in her jean pockets.

"Everything's fine, well, mostly fine, I guess."

"What does that mean, dear?"

"I just, uh, I need to ask you a favor and, well…spoiler alert: You're not going to like it."

"What is it?"

"Neal is up my ass about spending time with Henry. I guess the two of them want to watch some stupid movie that only airs tonight. I know it's last-minute but do you think there is _any_ possible way the kid could stay with him?"

"But it's my night; I've barely seen him all week."

"I know, it's total bullshit. I just, I guess I just don't want to fight about it with Neal anymore. So, if you agree, I swear you can have Henry for the whole weekend."

"You know I don't like tossing our son around like a football. We made a schedule so that he has structure and stability."

"Neal is pissed we didn't include him in the schedule," Emma told her. "He screamed at me for ninety minutes about it."

"He has some nerve to scream at you," Regina huffed. "Neal isn't on the schedule because has not earned the right to be. Did you tell him _that_?"

"I said that during Minute Two, which led to the next eighty-eight minutes of screaming. I've had a really awesome morning."

"Would you like _me_ to talk to him? I would be happy to remind him of exactly where he stands."

"As wonderful as that sounds right about now, I just don't think it's worth it—us taking on Neal."

"And why not?"

"Because, the thing is, Neal is eventually going to do what he always does: leave. And then neither of us will have to deal with this anymore. Why waste energy on someone who won't be a problem in a month?"

"So, your strategy is to wait it out?" Regina asked. "Because, I must warn you, that didn't work so well when I tried it with _you_."

"But Neal isn't me," Emma almost whispered, looking hurt at the suggestion. "It's different."

"Yes, dear, of course it is; I didn't mean to imply otherwise."

There was something about Regina's tone—how incredibly soft and gentle it was. Tink had never seen her handle anyone, besides Henry, with such care.

But, she realized, the two women had been through quite a lot in Neverland. It only seemed natural that they had formed a strong bond.

"I just want Neal to go back to New York so badly," Emma whined. "Even though I know Henry would be upset. Does that make me a terrible person?"

"Welcome to the Mansion of Misfit Toys," Tinkerbell interjected. "You're talking to the Evil Queen and a disgraced Fairy—we're in a no-judgment zone."

"I suppose it would be fine for Henry to stay with his father tonight," Regina conceded, far sooner than Tink would've expected. "But please make it clear that this is a one-time exception. I don't want Neal thinking he can change our schedule whenever something he wants to do comes up. And if he has a problem with that, you can send him to me."

"Thank you, Regina. Seriously—I mean it."

"You're welcome."

"It's so nice having someone else to talk to about the kid. You make me feel, like, I don't know…we're in this together."

"I believe that we are—whether we like it or not."

"Yeah, well, I guess what I'm saying is: I kind of like it."

Regina froze for a moment—looking slightly uncomfortable with the blunt confession.

She recovered quickly by changing the subject to more-pressing matters. "I will go get Henry's overnight bag."

As Regina walked up the staircase, Tink was left alone with Emma for what she realized was the first time ever.

"I'm sorry for barging in," the Savior offered. "I didn't mean to interrupt."

"No, that's okay, this actually works out well for me. Now maybe I can convince Regina to go drinking tonight."

"We could all use a few nights out after Neverland."

"Is there anywhere to go in this town besides Granny's?"

"You could try the Rabbit Hole. It's alright, kind of sleazy at times, but it gets the job done."

"You should come with us, since you won't have Henry either."

"Oh, um, I-I don't know," Emma fumbled. "I mean, I don't know if Regina would want that."

As if on cue, Regina came back into the room and handed over her son's bag. "What wouldn't I want?" she asked.

"I invited Emma to our girl's night," Tink reported.

"I wasn't aware that we were having one."

"You said you couldn't go out because Henry was staying over and now he's not."

"Right, yes, I did say that."

"Please?" The Fairy heard herself beg. "And before you answer, think about how shitty my life currently is."

"I suppose I have nothing better to do."

"That's probably the least-enthusiastic response ever, but I'll still take it."

"Emma, you are more than welcome to join us." Regina turned to the Savior. "Just as long as you don't bring your mother."

"Why would I bring her?"

"I wasn't aware she let you go out at night without her."

"Shut up," Emma said, but with a light-hearted smirk. "Yeah, alright, I'll be there."

* * *

Three beers into her self-proclaimed girl's night out, Tinkerbell was slightly confused as to why she felt so much like a third wheel.

But, she quickly realized, it was probably because the two women she was with couldn't talk about anything but their son.

The kid was cute, she could admit, but she didn't want to spend the whole evening listening to them discuss his latest science project.

As she scanned the room, searching for a cure for her boredom, she noticed a rather sketchy specimen with his eyes glued to Regina.

"That dude over there is ogling you," she quickly pointed out. "Maybe _he's_ your True Love."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Regina laughed as she noticed him. "All of your problems would be solved. You don't even care that he appears to be missing half of his teeth."

"Um," Emma tried to follow, but was clearly lost. "Why would anyone want that toothless weirdo to be your soul mate?"

"Because," Tink explained, "the only way I can get my wings back is if I find Regina's soul mate."

"So, in other words," Regina added, "she's not getting her wings back."

"I thought fairies got their wings when people believed in them? Finding a specific person's soul mate seems totally random."

"It's actually not random in this case," the brunette clarified. "Because that's how she lost her wings—trying to help me get out of my arranged marriage and find someone who truly loved me."

"Wait, what? You had an arranged marriage?"

"That's how she became Queen in the Enchanted Forrest," Tink shared, surprised Emma didn't already know. "Your mother didn't mention that?"

"No, she didn't," the Savior processed. "I definitely would've, uh, remembered."

"Christ_,"_ Tink muttered. "_Come on_, where are those membership cards?"

Regina laughed at their inside joke, but also shot her a warning look.

"Huh?" Emma asked. "What cards?"

"Nothing, dear, don't worry about it."

"I'm sorry, Regina, about the marriage, I mean. I had no clue."

"I wasn't looking for an apology; I only mentioned it because it was part of the story."

"It wasn't in the book either."

"What?"

"Henry's book," Emma continued. "I've read it cover to cover—it doesn't say anything about that."

"Well, it's _true_," Tink assured her. "I was there, I can vouch for it."

"No, I wasn't saying you're lying. It's just an odd thing to leave out of the book."

"I'm honestly not sure who wrote that book," Regina admitted. "But they left out a lot of information I personally feel would've been relevant."

"Like what else?" Emma pushed. "If there's more, fill me in."

"Perhaps one day—but The Rabbit Hole certainly isn't the place for_ that_ conversation," Regina said, before abruptly standing up. "Who wants another round?"

Both blondes responded with an affirmative nod, sending Regina back over to the bar.

"So, that's what Regina meant when she said you two had a 'complicated' history?" Emma continued, refusing to drop the subject. "You tried to help her?"

"Yup, but it all blew up and went straight to hell. I used to blame her but she was already in a pretty dark place when I met her. She's been fucked over more than anyone I've ever met. She deserves a break, I just hope I can help this time."

"Do you have any leads? On her True Love? Is there, like, a GPS for this shit?"

"Yeah, not so much, that would be nice though."

"I'm sure you'll figure it out."

"You sound more confident than I am."

"She's—uh—obviously got a rocky past but she's a strong person," Emma said—as her eyes followed Regina's movements at the bar. "And, I mean, she's gorgeous. So, I'm sure there's someone out there for her."

"Perhaps it would an easier job if half of the eligible bachelors in this town weren't busy drooling over you."

"Don't remind me—Regina can have them," the Savior groaned. "Actually, forget that, they're not good enough for her."

Suddenly, Tink had a flashback to one of her first encounters with the woman currently sitting in front of her.

She remembered the blonde charging at her, sword in hand, demanding to know Regina's whereabouts.

"You're protective of her, aren't you?"

"Uh, I don't know about that."

"It certainly seems that way."

"I made a promise to Henry, that nothing bad would happen to her. I almost broke that promise right before Neverland. There was this trigger; she almost died trying to deactivate it. Actually, it's kind of a long story. Anyway, I don't think Henry could live without her and I'm going to make sure he doesn't ever have to."

Before Tink could digest the jumbled explanation, Regina returned with their drinks. "What are we talking about?" she asked.

Instead of admitting the reality—that they were talking about her—Tink offered a half truth: "We were just talking about the pirate and the thief."

"Oh," Regina sat down, Tink sensing she was extremely unhappy with the response. "I see."

"And their _unwanted_ attention," Emma amended, causing the smile to return to the Queen's face.

As they all took a sip of their refilled beverages, both mothers' phones simultaneously vibrated on the table.

"It's Henry," Regina announced. "He actually remembered to say goodnight."

"He sent a picture, too." Emma stared lovingly at the screen. "What pajamas does he have on? I don't recognize them."

"Oh, I just bought them the other day. He grew out of his old ones."

"Oh my God, wait, Regina…did I show you the pictures from when we went shopping on Monday afternoon?"

"No, I don't think so."

"You're going to die! He kept putting on all of these ridiculous hats as a joke."

Regina scooted closer to her, which, frankly, didn't even seem possible.

"You guys are_ so_ boring," Tink complained. "I'm going to go play pool—maybe make some friends with people who don't have ten thousand pictures of their son on their phone."

"Have fun," Regina mumbled back at her, though she was one hundred percent sure she wouldn't be missed for a single second.

As she walked away, she looked at the pair of them huddled together at the table.

For a moment, she could've sworn she saw something.

_A spark in Emma's bright green eyes; a hopeful glisten in Regina's smile. _

But it had to be the beer.

She shook it off.

There was too much history, too much irony, too much absurdity.

Sure, Destiny and Fate were bitches. But they weren't _this_ bitchy.

It just couldn't be.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the lovely response to this little story :) I think I failed to mention earlier that this takes place post-Neverland but is AU in that there was no Pan/Henry body-switch and no new curse. Anyway, here's an update in which Tink runs around town like a fan girl. Enjoy! xo As usual- Thank you FlyYouFools for the beta!**

* * *

The next morning, Tinkerbell woke up in an unfamiliar bed in an embarrassingly large puddle of her own drool. As she lifted her head up from the damp pillow, she wiped her mouth and tried to recall how she ended up on the world's most comfortable mattress.

She remembered, surprisingly well, the walk from the Rabbit Hole to the Mansion. She remembered Regina insisting she stay the night before leading her to the guest room and tucking her in like a child.

And she also remembered Emma. Yes, Emma Swan was definitely there, too; lingering in the doorway, watching over the Queen like some sort of loyal knight.

As she recollected the night, Tink felt the slight pangs of a headache—but it wasn't quite as bad as she would've expected. In fact, she didn't even feel nauseous as she got up and made her way down the hallway.

She wanted to thank Regina for her hospitality and then she wanted, more than anything, to go home and take a shower.

She gently rapped on the door a few times and then walked through without waiting for a greeting**. **She saw that the Queen was sitting up in bed, looking like she had just awoke herself. And then Tink saw something else—something she _definitely_ wasn't expecting.

"Is that Emma?" Tink openly gawked at the sight of blonde curls peeking out from beneath Regina's covers. "Did you two…?"

"Did we what?" Regina asked casually; she was either not following the question or buying herself time to answer it.

"_You know_."

"I do?"

Tink rolled her eyes at her friend's ignorance. "How can you be so smart and yet so dense at the same time?"

"What, exactly, are you getting at?"

"Did you, Regina Mills, have sexual intercourse with Emma Swan last night?"

"Are you still drunk? Of course I didn't!" The Queen's voice shot up two octaves as she shrieked her response. "And I would be mortified if she woke up and heard you suggest something so absurd."

"She's passed out in your bed right now and you're looking at me like _I'm_ insane for asking?"

"I was telling her stories about Henry as a child," Regina explained. She pulled the covers off Emma's sleeping body to reveal the Savior was still fully dressed in her clothes from the previous night. "We must have fallen asleep. You would do well to get your mind out of the gutter."

"Oh."

For a brief moment, Tink thought the explanation made a decent amount of sense. After all, Regina and Emma were two strong, independent women who shared a kid. They were friends or co-parents—or perhaps some strange combination of the two.

But that didn't make them soul mates.

Tink scolded herself for being so desperate to defeat Blue and earn back her wings that she had concocted an entire fairytale in her head (even if it was, admittedly, a pretty good one).

She almost wanted to tell Regina what her drunken brain had thought up. But before she could, the Savior groaned and stirred from the loss of the blankets covering her.

"Regina?" Emma abruptly shot up in bed as her eyes searched for the brunette. "Where are we? Where's Henry?"

"You're fine," Regina's hand flew to Emma's bicep, grounding her in reality. "You're at my house and Henry's with Neal, remember?"

"Oh, right, yeah; I'm sorry."

"There is no need to apologize."

"I, uh, seriously don't even remember falling asleep." Emma appeared to have realized, exactly, where she was: in bed with her son's mother. Her cheeks flushed a bright pink tint and she suddenly stuttered over her words. "I didn't mean to, uh, invade your space or, you know, impose or anything like that."

"It's fine, dear," Regina promised. But the Savior's awkwardness had caused the brunette to come down with a bout of it herself. "I, um—I don't quite remember nodding off either. I believe it was rather late. In any case, it's of no matter."

"Note to self," Emma joked in reply. "Jeans are _not _comfortable pajamas."

Regina offered her a sympathetic smile before opting for changing the subject. "Would anyone like breakfast?"

"No, thank you," Tink quickly denied the offer. She _was_ slightly hungry—but she just wanted to leave before her theories developed any further. "I'm actually going to take off but I had a fun night and I appreciate you letting me crash here.""

"I had fun, too," Emma replied, while Regina remained silent.

And just like that, all the thoughts she had pushed out of her mind were back as quickly as they had left. Because Regina was too busy taking inventory of Emma's well-being to even manage to say good-bye.

And, frankly, no one had adequately explained why stories of Henry's childhood needed to be shared in Regina's _bedroom_.

It was a mansion, for Christ's sake. What the hell was wrong with the living room? Or the kitchen? Or any other damn place in the whole house?

As she walked out of the room, Tink heard Emma's voice echo through the hallway.

"Just because she didn't want breakfast doesn't mean I don't get it, right?"

"You are such a pain in the ass."

She really wished they would stop sounding like an old married couple; it wasn't helping matters one bit.

* * *

Tink marched down the streets of Storybrooke as she tried to clear her thoughts. Fresh air was supposedly good for mind-clearing and she needed to get this insane idea out of her head.

_Unless it wasn't insane. _

It wasn't as if Blue had given her any helpful hints. So then, she reasoned, why was pursuing this option so much crazier than trying to find some random person off the street?

_Maybe fate had brought Regina and Emma together through Henry for a reason._

Yeah, she reminded herself, the reason was the curse. One of them had to set it, one of them had to break it. It was as simple as that.

_Or was it?_

Damn it.

Okay, maybe she could pursue this option just a little.

Obviously, she had to do it on the down-low. But she could handle that. She might as well rule it out; that seemed like the best option. The quicker she could rule it out the better, then she could move on with the quest.

But first things first, she thought: _I really need coffee. _

The fairy walked into Granny's and could already taste the caffeine jolting her awake. But before she could take a seat at the counter, she heard a familiar voice call to her.

"Morning, Tink."

Sitting alone in a booth was none other than Baelfire. She had known him quite well once, when he was a boy. Now he was all grown-up, unlike so many of the Lost Boys she had met over the years.

"Hey." She sat down across from him, deciding he could serve as a suitable distraction. "How was your night with Henry?"

"A lot of fun; I just dropped him off at school. Did I hear him correctly? Were you really out with Emma and Regina?"

"Yeah, it was a good night. Although it would've been better if those two shut up about Henry for, like, five seconds—no offense."

"None taken; they do that a lot."

And then Tink realized she was face-to-face with someone who could provide insight into Emma Swan's romantic life. Maybe, just maybe, she could get something useful out of him - so much for him serving as a distraction.

"How's the whole Emma thing going, by the way?"

"What do you mean?"

"Winning her back," Tink clarified. "How's that going?"

"Did Hook send you?" Neal looked at her skeptically. "To try to get information out of me?"

"I have no interest in helping Killian; literally, the last thing I want to do is help him get into Emma's pants. I have enough problems of my own."

"Sorry," he muttered. "I'm just a bit paranoid lately."

"Which, I take it, means it's not going well with Emma?"

"It's a disaster. She's so distant—she barely looks at me. Snow and Charming have tried to help but that somehow just makes it worse."

She held back the somewhat-cruel and sarcastic commentary running through her mind. For instance, she didn't question out loud how he could _possibly_ think involving a 28-year-old's parents would be useful.

"Well, Bae, it seems like Emma has a lot going on at the moment."

"Do you know if she's spending time with Hook?" he desperately inquired. "Wait, actually, I don't know if I want to know the answer."

It was a little bit amusing: Neal was so damn threatened by Hook, but the pirate was nowhere near Emma. Instead, his ex-girlfriend was currently cuddled up to Regina.

"From what I know, Emma doesn't seem that interested in him."

"Really? And did she say anything about _me _last night?"

"The only guy she talked about was Henry."

"Right," Neal nodded as he sipped his coffee. "I really don't know what I'm doing wrong."

Tink could've provided him with an extremely long list, but instead, she stayed focused. For one, she had to wonder just how straight the supposedly straight Savior was.

"Here's an odd question," she warned, unsure how it would be received. "Is there any possible way that Emma's into women?"

"What makes you ask that?"

"I just thought I picked up on something—call it a vibe."

He stared blankly at her as he digested her suggestion. She patiently waited for him to reply, but he seemed at a loss for words.

"Are you having some sort of stroke?" Tink finally asked. "If you think it's _that _ridiculous of a concept, just forget it."

"No, no… it's not ridiculous," Neal assured her. "I just don't know if I'm supposed to…I don't know who in Storybrooke knows…."

"Wait," she whispered. "Are you saying that she _is _into women?"

"I'm saying she's been with both," he explained. "But _I'm_ the only person she's ever been in a real relationship with. I'm the only person she's been in _love _with. We have a son together."

From the conversation Tink overheard yesterday, the one in which Emma was practically praying for Neal to leave town, it certainly didn't seem like the Savior considered Neal a vital part of Henry's family life.

"Anyway," he continued, "I really don't think Emma's sexuality is the issue here. See, the problem with winning Emma back is that she doesn't trust me. I have to find a way to show her…"

"Uh-huh," Tink nodded, though she had already tuned him out. When he was done ranting she only had one thing to add: "Plus, there's the whole her wanting you dead thing."

"Does _everyone_ in town know she said that?"

"I don't think so. I think Regina told me."

"But Regina wasn't even there when that happened. How'd she find out?"

_Shit. _Tink had completely forgotten that Regina wasn't in the Echo Cave. "Oh, uh, I don't know. Maybe Emma told her?"

"I know you're friends with Regina but, frankly, I'm not sure how I feel about those two being all buddy-buddy. I think Regina's still teaching Emma magic and that seems kind of risky."

"I wouldn't worry. Regina's got a short list of people she cares about, but I'm pretty sure Emma is on it."

"Oh, yeah," he shrugged. "That's good."

_Not for you, _Tink thought to herself,_ definitely not for you._

* * *

On the list of bizarre things Tink had done in her life, sitting outside an elementary school waiting to ask a twelve-year-old boy about his mother's love life was close to the top. She convinced herself it was justified: When it came to trying to find out more about Regina, her options were severely limited.

"Henry?" She spotted the boy amongst the crowd of school children and approached him with a smile. "Hey."

"Hey, Tinkerbell," he greeted; he didn't seem fazed by her unexpected presence (though, she considered, his naivety was probably why he handed his heart over to Pan, no questions asked).

"Are you walking home today?"

"Yeah, I'm going to my Mom's house. Are you coming over?"

"Yeah, I just—I left something with your mom. Do you mind if I walk with you?"

"Not at all."

Briefly, they strolled in silence. After years in Neverland, Tink had developed a slight distaste for snotty, smelly, boys. She also had no filter when it came to kids. She tried to remind herself to be on her best behavior; she knew Regina would murder her for anything less.

"So, how do you like Storybrooke?" Henry broke the silence with polite small talk.

"It's alright; although pretty much anywhere is better than Neverland."

"I have no idea how you survived there for so long."

"I barely did," she candidly admitted. "You were really lucky to get out."

"I know; it's all thanks to my Mom."

"Yeah," Tink agreed, happy he was aware of it. "Actually, do you think I could ask you a question about her?"

"Sure, what is it?"

She knew she had to be more delicate with her line of questioning to Henry than she had been with Baelfire. So, she started small.

"When you were growing up, did she ever date anyone?"

"No, not that I know of. Why?"

"Well, if I want to get my wings back, I have to find her true love."

"That's awesome!" Henry exclaimed, appearing very excited by the prospect. "Is he in Storybrooke?"

"Calm down," Tink gently warned. "I'm still in—umm—I guess I would call it the research phase?"

"What kind of research are you doing?"

She didn't know how to answer that question, because so far she had only been snooping around aimlessly. But then she remembered something: There was a book of some sort—Emma had mentioned at the bar. Maybe it could help.

"Well, Henry, I was wondering if I could borrow that book you have? The one that helped with the curse?"

"Of course; that's probably a good place to start."

"Also, could you not tell either of your moms about this?"

"My Mom doesn't know that you're trying to find her soul mate?"

"She does but I don't want her to know any of the details until I'm sure I have the right candidate."

"Oh, yeah, that's smart," the boy quickly agreed. "But why can't I tell Emma?"

"Because she might tell your Mom."

"Emma's pretty good at secret operations."

"I'm sure she is. It's just that they've been hanging out a lot and I wouldn't want it to slip out or anything."

"Right," Henry accepted the logic before offering her advice. "Hey, if you're looking to do research, you should talk to Mr. Gold."

"Rumpelstiltskin? Why?"

"Because he sees the future. At least, sometimes he does. I'm not exactly sure how it works. But maybe he knows who my mom is supposed to be with. There might be a price for the information, though; so just be careful."

"Right, okay, I will."

"You should go see him now, then come over to my house after. Do you have a cell phone?"

"Yeah," she pulled the newly purchased device out of her pocket. Regina had taught her how to use it fairly quickly. "Why?"

"Let me put in my number," Henry grabbed it from her hands and started punching in digits. "I'll leave the book in the front hallway. Text me when you're in the house. I'll call my mom upstairs so you can grab it without her seeing."

"You're a pretty smart kid," she commended with a laugh. "I guess I see what all of the fuss is about."

He beamed back at her, clearly proud of his ingenious plan.

Why was she not even remotely surprised that Regina's kid was such a sneaky little shit?

* * *

Tink promised herself that Gold would be her last impromptu visit of the day. After this, she would go get the stupid book from Henry and spend the night at home reading up on this strange town and the curse that brought it to this world.

She walked into the Dark One's shop, completely unsure what to expect. He had quite the reputation and she knew she needed to be on the top of her game.

"Tinkerbell," he greeted her from behind the counter. "Shopping for the essentials for life post-Neverland?"

"No," she said, as she walked closer to him. "I'm not here to shop; I'm here because I am hoping you can help me."

"With what, dearie?"

"Well, I'm not sure if you know about my history with Regina..."

"Yes, of course," he interrupted. "I know all about what you tried to do for her—it's quite a touching story."

"Right, of course you know; I forgot you were, like, her magic-mentor when she was a teenage bride."

"And just what sort of information on your 'friend' are you looking for?" He snapped, unamused with her commentary. "Considering this happened decades ago? Why is it of importance now?"

"I'm trying to earn back my wings and, apparently, I have to find Regina's actual soul mate this time."

"What an interesting twist," Gold chuckled at her predicament. "Thought up by the Blue Fairy, no doubt?"

"Yeah, and, well, rumor has it you can see the future. I was wondering if you had any idea who it is?"

"Regina's soul mate? No, I'm afraid I don't."

"Right," she sighed, though she hadn't expected much else. "I figured it was a long shot."

"However," the imp continued, "I can tell you who it's _not_."

"Alright?" She was confused and slightly concerned with the response. She didn't want to fall victim to his infamous manipulation. "What's that mean?"

"Well, I know for sure it's not the man you brought her to that night."

"How do you know that? Is he dead?"

"He would've been if he was, in fact, her true love."

"Explain," she demanded. "That's pretty cryptic."

"When I found out what you were trying to do for her, I looked into the matter rather thoroughly. I had to keep Regina on the path I put her on. If that man was her soul mate, I would've made sure there was no chance of them ever meeting. But, alas, he was no threat."

"For now, I'm going to gloss over how disturbing that is because I have bigger questions. If the man with the lion tattoo wasn't her soul mate, does that mean Blue did something to the pixie dust? I still don't get it; how did I get it wrong?"

"I'm honestly not sure what went wrong," Gold confessed. "I just know that Destiny did not want Regina with that man."

"But that doesn't help me narrow my search," the fairy complained. "Could we go door-to-door so you can tell me who else it's _not_?"

"I'm afraid Blue might consider that cheating."

"Probably," she conceded. "Do I owe you anything for this?"

"Trying to get the Queen to fall in love will be difficult enough—consider this one on the house."

"Thanks," she nodded, as she turned on her heels to leave.

But before she could make it to the door, he spoke again. "May I also offer you a friendly warning?"

"I guess so."

"I've known Regina for a very long time. When and_ if_ you find the person—you shouldn't pressure her."

"Why do you even care?"

"We've been through quite a lot together. And now that the dust is beginning to settle, I would like to see her happy. She is my grandson's mother, after all."

"Well, don't worry, I wasn't planning on pressuring her into anything."

"Good. Because that's the thing about true love, dearie: it tends to happen organically."

"Yeah," images of Emma and Regina's natural chemistry danced through her mind. "I think you're right about that."

* * *

When she finally made it back to Mifflin Street, Tink let herself into the Mansion. She made it into the hallway and was about to text Henry when something caught her eye. In the living room, Regina was standing directly behind Emma, their bodies pressed closely together.

The intimate image caused Tink to panic. Without thinking it through, she jumped into the coat closet. She hid in the darkness and watched the pair through the tiny crack in the door. She had clearly sunk to new lows.

"Emma," Regina sighed dramatically as she readjusted the blonde's hands. "You _have_ to get out of your own head."

"This is a waste of time," the blonde declared, stepping away from Regina's embrace. "I can only make it work during life-threatening situations."

"That's not true, you started a fire in one of our lessons and I wasn't threatening to kill you."

Ah, Tink realized: magic lessons, the ones Neal had mentioned.

"But if it would help," Regina continued, "I could take a knife to your throat as incentive?"

"Hysterical," Emma deadpanned. "I want to be able to use magic whenever I want, not just when someone is about to be killed."

"Do you mind if I ask why you're suddenly so interested in learning?"

"My parents think if I have it in me I should learn it."

"I don't care what your parents think. I'm asking _you:_ How do you feel about it?"

"I guess I'm the Savior," she apathetically shrugged. "I should probably know what I'm doing."

"You guess you're the Savior," Regina shrugged back, mocking Emma's less-than-confident actions. "I thought Neverland taught you_ exactly_ who you are."

"No, Neverland just left me more confused than ever."

"How so?"

"Pan told me only I could save Henry. But I didn't, _you_ did."

"Oh," Regina seemed stunned by the credit she had just been given. "Pan underestimated me."

"And so did I," Emma replied softly. "If you weren't there, we would've lost Henry."

"There is no use playing the what-if game. All that matters is our son is home safe."

"I keep thinking about that tree," Emma continued, as she sat down on the couch. "Mary-Margaret and I both would've died. We have so many regrets—but not you. You just broke loose like a total badass. I'm supposed to be the Savior, but I was useless."

"You were not useless," Regina insisted, before sitting down next to her. "You were the leader and kept your cool the whole time. I wish I showed half as much bravery."

"You are braver than you think, Regina."

Tink only wished she could get a closer look at her friend's face. The way that Emma spoke to her, as if she actually understood her, was exactly what Regina needed.

"Well," the Queen replied, "if it makes you feel better: I may not have regrets, but I have plenty of remorse."

"What's the difference?"

"I don't regret my actions; they led me to Henry, which means I wouldn't change them. But that doesn't mean I don't feel the darkness of what I've done weighing heavy on my soul. My heart is as black as night."

"I don't believe that, you know," Emma smiled. "You love Henry so much—your heart can't be that black."

Suddenly, Tink remembered why she had come over in the first place. She wanted to keep watching them so badly—but she was starting to feel a little weird about it. Not to mention that she was slightly concerned if she didn't text Henry soon, she would have to sleep in this damn closet.

She pulled out her phone and scrolled to his number.

**Tink: Can you call your moms upstairs? I'm already in the house.**

**Henry: You are? Where?**

**Tink: Coat closet. Hurry up before I get caught or run out of oxygen. **

**Henry: On it. **

"Moms!" Henry's voice bellowed. "Can you both come up here for a minute?"

"Speaking of the little prince," Regina gestured toward the staircase. "It sounds as though he needs us."

* * *

When Regina and Emma came back downstairs, Tink stood in the front-hallway grateful she hadn't been caught.

"Hello," Regina greeted her, assuming she had just arrived. "Was I expecting you?"

"No, you weren't; I thought I left my phone here but then I found it."

"Oh, well, I'm glad you did."

As they spoke, Emma scanned through the messages on her own phone with an obvious frown. "Shit, I have to go to the station."

"Quite frankly I'm surprised you didn't get called in earlier," Regina commented.

"Yeah—well, thanks for—back there…"

Tink cringed at the return of the awkwardness. She guessed Emma was trying to thank Regina for the lesson, but she was epically failing.

"Of course," Regina saved her. "We can keep working on it."

And then, Tink watched as Emma came pretty damn close to hugging Regina goodbye. The Fairy was sure it was the presence of a third person that stopped her.

Instead of an embrace, Emma nodded at them both and then left.

"Was she here all day?" Tink pushed when the Savior was gone. "Like, since I left?"

"I suppose she was."

"What did you guys do?"

"She's trying to get a hold of her magic."

"So, you're helping her?"

"I'm trying."

"That seems awful nice for an Evil Queen."

"It would be dangerous for her to have all that magic inside of her and not know what to do with it."

"Uh-huh," the Fairy studied Regina's face, trying to gauge if she was aware of her attachment to Henry's birthmother. "Right."

"Why are you looking at me like that? Do you not like Emma?"

"I like Emma plenty. I just didn't realize how much _you _did."

"I confess that I find her tolerable. And Henry is very pleased we are getting along."

Gold's words came rushing back to her mind. She realized that she couldn't let Regina come anywhere close to suspecting who the focus of her soul-mate investigation was.

"Just don't spend so much time 'tolerating' Emma that you forget you need to find your soul mate."

"I thought that was _your_ job."

"It is and I'm working on it," Tink promised—and oh, how true a statement it was. "But if I do my job, are you even ready? To love again? I realize I didn't even ask you that."

"Admittedly I am a bit scared. However, I believe I am braver than I once suspected."

"Well then," Tink tried not to scream out loud at the fact that Regina had just repeated Emma's words. The statement sealed her determination. "I guess I have work to do."


	3. Chapter 3

**Finally, an update for you :) Hope you enjoy! xo**

* * *

Tinkerbell spent her entire Saturday reading Henry's book from cover-to-cover. Locked in her room at Granny's, she flipped through every page and drank in the rich stories they held. Indeed, she was so captivated by the tales that she accidently forgot to eat or drink anything all day—the rumblings of her empty stomach informed her of just how much time had passed.

Hours later, when she finally finished, she had come to two conclusions:

First, Regina was right-the book left out a _lot_ of details and was definitely told from the perspective of someone who favored Snow White. Yes, Regina had done a lot of screwed up things—but the book made it seem like her motivation for revenge was purely superficial. There was no mention of abusive mothers, spilled secrets, murdered fiancés or arranged marriages.

Second, Tink was baffled by the fact that no one had considered the idea of Emma and Regina as a couple before. Despite the undeniable slant of the book, the idea of the Evil Queen and the Savior _still _made a ridiculous amount of sense. After all, the Savior was born—quite literally—to bring back the happy endings, to set everything right. Why shouldn't that include the one who needed the most healing of all? Plus, the two women were already tied together by destiny—that much was undeniable.

The Fairy felt like the discoverer of some hidden treasure, like she wanted to patent it before someone else stole her idea. She wanted to shout it from the rooftops and ask how everyone else could've been so damn blind.

But, clearly, none of those were options.

If this was _ever _going to work (and that was a long-shot) she had to be patient. And that was a problem because Tinkerbell had always been the least-patient fairy of them all.

* * *

On Sunday morning, Tinkerbell met Regina for brunch at Granny's. The two chatted aimlessly and were close to finishing their meals when Emma Swan and Snow White walked in.

"Oh, Emma's here," Tink casually informed her friend. She was facing the door while Regina sat in the opposite direction, unable to see for herself who was entering the diner.

"With Mary-Margaret?"

"Yeah, how did you know that? You got eyes in the back of your head or something?"

"No, they always come here on Sundays."

_Interesting, _Tink thought to herself. _Apparently, Regina knows Emma's schedule._

"Shouldn't we say hi?"

"Emma is with her mother, it's best we don't."

"I thought things were pretty civil between you and Snow?"

"Civil, yes," Regina agreed. "But that doesn't mean Emma wants the two of us interacting. Truthfully, I can't say that I blame her. It's best for everyone involved, really."

"So, what? You don't even think she's going to acknowledge that you're here? She slept over your house the other night but now she's going to pretend you're invisible?"

Regina shrugged, signifying that, yes, that was _exactly _what she expected Emma to do.

"Alright, that's really weird, but, whatever."

Tink watched as Snow and Emma hovered at the counter and ordered what looked like hot cocoa. For a few minutes, the pair happily conversed with Ruby. Finally, Emma caught Tink's eye. As soon as she did, the Savior smiled brightly and made her way toward the table with her mother following close behind.

"Hey!" Emma enthusiastically greeted, before sitting down in the booth right next to Regina. "Sorry, I guess I didn't see you guys when we first came in."

"Hi." Regina, clearly shocked but trying to hide it, smiled back. Snow remained standing awkwardly and Regina simply nodded at her. They appeared to be just _barely_ civil.

"Where's the kid? At soccer?"

"Yes, he met his friends but I told him he needed to be home at noon. He has homework to finish."

"Speaking of that," Emma tentatively began. "Uh, remember that science project—the one I said I had totally under control? As it turns out, I don't have it under control at all."

Emma looked slightly embarrassed—like she had failed as a mother and was questioning her own intelligence for her inability to help with a seventh-grade assignment. Tink knew that Regina could've easily taken advantage of the situation to tout her own intellect. But she didn't.

"Ah, yes….well, Henry's science teacher this year is notoriously difficult."

"Right?" Emma perked up, now looking justified in her own confusion. "Anyway, do you think you could help us? I figure between the three of us we'll be able to come up with something."

"Of course, dear."

"Great, so we'll work on it tomorrow after school?"

"But isn't the project due in two days?"

"Yeah, but I promised you a no-interruptions weekend with Henry, which means no visits from me or Neal or anybody."

"Homework is an acceptable interruption," Regina concluded. "And, besides, we've already established you and Neal have a different set of rules. You should come over this afternoon."

"Awesome, thanks, I'll be there."

Just as she finished speaking, Emma reached for a strawberry on Regina's plate; she doused it in syrup and popped it into her mouth.

Tink and Snow exchanged a knowing look—the Queen may not have been so evil these days, but that didn't mean she liked to share.

"Excuse me?" Regina huffed.

_Here we go, _Tink thought, _that was big mistake, Emma. _

"Did you just ruin a perfectly good strawberry by dousing it in sugar?"

"Uh, no, I made it better," The Savior reasoned. "Besides, you're the one who had all that syrup on your plate already—so, don't judge me."

Emma took another strawberry, repeated the action and held it out in front of her. "Here, try it."

_No fucking way was Regina about to, literally, eat off Emma's fingers. _

But that was precisely what happened—Regina leaned forward and happily accepted the fruit, never breaking eye contact with her son's birth mother.

"Not bad," she admitted.

"That's what I thought. See, Regina, I know what you like."

Tink wasn't sure in what universe the exchange could be considered anything other than flirting. And judging by the uneasy look on Snow White's face, she wasn't the only one who noticed.

The disturbed women spoke up. "Emma, we have to go now or we're going to be late to meet your father."

"Right," Emma stood. "Anyway, see you both later."

Tink was internally screaming but she dared not speak a word.

* * *

The Fairy was walking home when she received a text from none other than Henry Mills.

**Henry: Hey, do you have any leads yet?**

It was becoming increasingly difficult for her to keep all of this to herself, especially after what she just witnessed. Henry seemed like a pretty reasonable kid. After all, he had enough faith to believe in the curse—and to figure out how to break it. Maybe should could trust him; she really felt like she needed an ally.

**Tink: Yeah, I might.**

**Henry: WHO?!**

**Tink: Too complicated to explain here.**

**Henry: I'm walking home from soccer. Meet me at the library?**

This was a big risk—she only prayed it provided an equally big reward.

* * *

"So?" Henry stared anxiously at her, as they stood together in between rows of books. "Who is it?"

Tinkerbell took a deep breath and, then, for the first time admitted it out loud: "Emma."

"You think Emma knows who it is?"

Okay, so, maybe Henry wasn't at smart as she first suspected.

"No, I think it _is_ Emma."

"Wait," the kid processed the suggestion and looked like his brain might spontaneously combust. "Are you saying my moms are gay for each other?

"Uh, yeah, I guess I am. Is that weird for you?"

"Not as weird as suggesting that the Evil Queen and the Savior are soul mates. I hate to break it to you, but I think you read the book wrong."

"No," she corrected. "I think _you _read it wrong."

"Really?" He softened. "You're being completely serious?"

"Yeah, I think you should re-read it." Tinkerbell took the infamous book out of her bag and returned it to him. "And then let me know what you think. Because the thing is, it's a waste of time to pursue it if you're against the idea. I highly doubt your moms would do anything to piss you off."

"Alright, I'll re-read it."

"And while you're at it, maybe think about how lucky you are to have two adult women wrapped around your damn finger."

He nodded obediently and she felt confident that her point was made. For now, she could only wait.

* * *

At seven o'clock that night, Tinkerbell's phone bleeped on her dresser.

**Henry: 911 RE: Operation Wings. Future code name = OW. **

She had no fucking clue what that was supposed to mean. Whatever language Henry was speaking, she was not fluent in it.

**Tinkerbell: ? **

**Henry: MEET ME AT THE LIBRARY NOW.**

* * *

"What the hell is Operation Wings?" she asked.

The pair stood in the very same spot they were in just a few hours earlier.

"It's our secret operation to get my moms together so you can be a real fairy again."

She was about to comment that it didn't need a damn code name, when she realized the gravity of what Henry had just said. "Wait, does that mean you're in?"

"Yeah, I'm in."

"What changed your mind so quickly?"

"This," he pulled out his phone but she failed to understand the significance. "It's a video of what happened when we tried to make my volcano for science class. Just watch, okay?"

She nodded as he pressed play.

* * *

"Kid, what are you doing? Why are you taping this?"

The camera shook while Henry set the device in place—the picture was blurry at first, but then steadied.

"We have to write down every step in full detail," he explained. "My teacher said we should videotape it so we don't forget anything—and to see if we make any mistakes."

"That's a great suggestion," Regina approved. "I'm glad you listened to her, sweetheart."

Emma made her way closer to the camera, leaned down and spoke directly to it: "Hello, ladies and gentlemen—welcome to Henry's science project, Take One."

"What on earth are you doing, dear?"

"I'm talking to the audience, duh. Why don't you say something to the camera?"

The former queen walked over, stood unnecessarily close to Emma and uttered: "Something."

"Did you just make a Dad joke?" The Savior asked, unable to suppress her amusement. "You totally just made a Dad joke!"

"Stop your ramblings and help me read the instructions."

"I told you a hundred times, Regina, you need reading glasses."

"I do not."

"Fine—so, then, what does this say?" Emma held the instructions in front of the brunette. Regina stared at the paper but came up with absolutely nothing.

"Sorry, Mom," Henry intervened. "I think Emma might be right about this one."

"What's the big deal, anyway?" Emma nudged Regina's shoulder. "You'd look so good in them."

"Can we re-focus?" Regina insisted, ignoring the compliment. "What do we need to start?"

"Okay, well, Your Majesty, it says we need flour, salt, cooking oil and water. Do you have all of that?"

"Of course I do."

Henry fast-forwarded through the boring parts—the parts in which they were actually doing the project. But he pressed play again toward the end.

"We did it!" Emma shrieked in victory, as they finally made the volcano work. "I seriously thought that you were going to flunk, Henry."

"What a lovely testament to your confidence in us, dear."

"Sorry, but I think this calls for a group hug."

"Uh, I love you guys, but no," Henry objected. "I'm a little old for a group hug."

"You're too old to hug us now?" Emma pouted. "Well, that's depressing."

"Besides," the boy continued. "You're covered in baking soda."

"It's just baking soda," Regina leaned forward and gently wiped the powder off Emma's face. "Emma can't help being the biggest mess in the house."

* * *

Henry stopped the video. Tink stood in silent awe at what she had seen.

"Emma was supposed to leave after we finished but she stayed for dinner," he reported. "And after dinner, they went into the living room together and fell asleep basically on each other."

"Wait," Tink realized. "Where do they think you are right now?"

"Uh—they're asleep; I just left."

"Henry!" She shouted. "What if they wake up? Are you trying to give them a joint heart attack? They just saved your ass from Peter Pan."

"You're not focusing on the important thing here: I've never seen either of them smile so much. Plus, Emma was totally using that group-hug as an excuse to try to hug my mom. And my mom talks about Emma like she's part of the family, which is a really big deal."

"I know it is."

"But this is even more sensitive than I thought. They can never know what we suspect."

"Yeah, you're definitely right on that front."

"What do we do now?"

Tink had once heard someone say that in every instance of unrequited love, there was one person who was slightly more aware of it than the other. In this case, she was sure it was The Savior.

"I think I need to spend more time with Emma," Tink concluded. "But I can't really think of a good reason."

"I know!" Henry nearly jumped up with enthusiasm. "She's always complaining she needs more people to work at the station."

"You want me to become a cop?"

"Why not? It's not like you have a job around here. What else are you going to do all day?"

"Alright, mini-Regina, calm yourself with the passive-aggressive insults." Tink rolled her eyes. "You think Emma will hire me?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "But it's worth a shot."

* * *

Tink couldn't believe the lengths to which she was going, or the fact that she was taking advice from a 12-year-old. But on Monday morning, she strolled into the Sheriff's Station with one goal in mind.

She found Emma Swan sitting at her desk, cell phone in hand, grinning at the screen.

"Someone good must be texting you," Tink noted in greeting. "That's quite a big smile."

"Oh, hey," Emma looked up. "It's, uh, actually Regina. She is seriously funny even though I'm pretty sure she doesn't mean to be."

_Of course it was Regina. _

"She can be pretty amusing without trying."

"Anyway, sorry. Do you need something?"

"Well, yeah, I heard a rumor you need help around here."

"I definitely do. Why, do you know anyone who wants a job?"

"Me."

"Wait, really?"

"If I'm going to live in Storybrooke, I figure I better get a job so I can move out of Granny's sometime soon. Plus, I'm sort of bored out of my mind."

"I can understand that," Emma empathized. "Do you have any experience, though?"

"Well, I managed to stay alive in Neverland all those years. Does that count?"

"Hell, yeah, it does," The Savior said with a laugh. "But I'll have to train you—things are obviously different in this world."

"Really? You'll take me?"

"Yeah, sure. It'd honestly be nice to have someone around here who isn't related to me. When can you start?"

"How's right now?"

* * *

Tinkerbell, admittedly, got a little swept up in her new job and allowed herself to get distracted from the mission. She was having way too good of a time learning how to use a gun and driving around with the Savior on patrol.

But it wasn't entirely for nothing—Tink had learned something pretty important. She had learned that Emma Swan was really, really cool. The Sheriff was kind, patient, funny and strong-willed. Tink now not only believed Emma and Regina belonged together, but was also genuinely rooting for them. They both deserved happiness.

On a quiet morning, Tink and Emma sat at the station.

"What are you doing Friday?" the latter inquired.

"Nothing, probably," Tink admitted. "What's up?"

"My mom is throwing a birthday party for Ariel. Do you want to come?"

"The mermaid? Sure, why not? I rarely turn down an invite to a party."

"Do you think Regina would want to go?"

_Ah, finally, back on track. _

"Why wouldn't she?"

"Well, because Mary-Margaret is hosting," Emma explained. "Plus, I mean, big gatherings aren't really her scene and I think she had a thing with Ariel back in the day—though they seem alright now. Actually, I'm pretty sure Regina sort of helped her in Neverland…"

"Regina will probably appreciate the invite even if she doesn't want to go."

"Should I tell her my Mom is the host? Or should I just leave that out?"

"She doesn't like surprises."

"Right," Emma nodded. "Okay, I'll text her."

Quite literally seconds after the message was sent, Emma's phone buzzed against her desk.

"That was fast," Tink said. "What'd she say?"

"She asked who will watch Henry if the whole town is going."

"I could watch him," Tink offered, possibly a little too quickly. "I mean, if it would help get Regina out of the house."

"Nah, Granny is handing over the keys to my Mom and taking the night off," Emma explained as she typed back to Regina. "Eric, Hook and a bunch of the guys are bartending. Granny can totally watch the kid."

When Emma's phone buzzed again, Tink asked: "Did she go for that?"

"She just said 'OK.' What does that mean? I don't know what that means. Do you think she's coming?"

Emma's rant was interrupted when her phone went off once more. "Oh, well, now she asked if we can carpool so I guess she is."

"She's probably a bit intimidated to show up herself."

"I didn't think of that," Emma frowned. "I was supposed to help set up but David can do that and I'll get Regina. Do you want me to pick you up, too?"

"No, that's okay," Tink insisted, excited by the prospect of the pair arriving together. "I'll just meet you there."

One thing was for sure: It was going to be an interesting party.


	4. Chapter 4

**I am very grateful and excited this story hit 400 followers. I am having a lot of fun writing it and reading your reviews (which always help me in the writing process). Here's the next update which I hope you enjoy! 4 weeks left until season3b! xo**

* * *

The day of the party had arrived and Tinkerbell couldn't shake the feeling of intense anticipation. Without being able to pinpoint exactly why, she was certain tonight was going to be a game-changer.

Truthfully, it was the first time in forever she felt like she had a purpose. She had forgotten how much she genuinely loved helping people. Yes, Emma and Regina probably needed a bigger push than most, but she was starting to believe they would get there eventually.

It was 4:15 p.m. and the fairy-turned-cop was on shift with none other than Sheriff Emma Swan. The blonde Savior sat at her desk keeping herself occupied on her laptop as she munched on an apple. Tink was pretty sure the fruit came from the Regina's infamous tree but she wasn't going to go there. She needed to save her commentary for later that evening.

Tink was, quite literally, staring at the clock waiting for it to be quitting time when her phone vibrated. There was really only one person who texted her, so she wasn't surprised to see his name flash across her screen.

**Henry: Important OW status update! My mom has been trying on outfits for the party since I got home from school.**

This was good news, she thought. The party clearly meant something to Regina. Or, perhaps, it was more about the person who was driving her there.

**Tink: That's adorable! Tell her to show some skin!**

**Henry: Dude, no. I'm not saying that to my mom. Use your head.**

Forgetting her whereabouts, Tink laughed out loud. Henry was an impossibly perfect combination of both of his mothers. He had Regina's disarming intelligence and biting sarcasm. He had Emma's compassion and killer-instincts. He had both of their wit.

"What's so funny?" Emma looked up from her laptop with a curious gaze. "Is it Hook? Can it please be Hook?"

"Not Hook, sorry. I already told you, I won't help you get rid of him by sacrificing myself. You'll just have to find another way."

_Like telling him you've got a crush on Regina, _she thought_. _

"Well, you can't blame me for trying."

Emma stared at her, clearly still expecting an explanation for her outburst. But she couldn't exactly admit it was Henry who had her cracking up. She was about to spew some bullshit excuse when she was saved by the sound of a high-strung voice they both recognized.

"Emma!" Snow bellowed through the hallway. The Savior's mother quickly turned the corner, holding bags of party supplies in her hands. "Are you ready?"

"Hey," Emma greeted her. "Am I ready for what?"

"To help me decorate!"

"David didn't tell you? He's going to help you instead."

"Oh, come on," Snow sighed dramatically, clearly finding the substitution unacceptable. "Your father is a _terrible _decorator. He just randomly tacks things to the wall. He has no understanding of color coordination or patterns."

"Do you seriously think_ I_ would be better at all that?" Emma laughed at the idea. "Just boss him around like you usually do, it'll be fine."

"Alright," Snow conceded before finally inquiring why Emma couldn't assist her. "Is everything OK with you though?"

"Yeah, everything's fine. I have to go home after work and then straight to Regina's house."

"But, wait, are you still coming to the party?"

"Yeah, we're carpooling."

"Oh," Snow finally understood exactly what was going on. "I see."

Tink realized that eventually she was going to have to figure out just how much of an obstacle the Charmings would be to her "operation," as Henry called it. Snow seemed uncomfortable at the mere mention of her former nemesis' name, which wasn't a good sign.

"So, does the look on your face mean David also forgot to tell you that I invited Regina?"

"Yes, he did, but that's perfectly fine, sweetheart. I meant to invite her. I haven't seen her around and I was going to call her but…"

"You've been swamped," Emma finished the thought. "I get it."

Tink was sure Emma had safely steered them away from the more painful aspects of the conversation. But then, as seemed to be a particular talent of hers, Snow opened her mouth once more and brought them right back.

"So, did something happen to Regina's car then?"

"No, why?"

"She's not usually one to carpool."

"When she shows up to these things by herself people stare at her like she doesn't belong."

"Well that is_ very_ nice of you," Snow praised. "I'm sure she appreciates the support and it's great for Henry to see as well."

"Right, I guess so."

"You're coming too, Tinkerbell?" Snow turned her attention to the fairy. "I hope you are."

"I'll be there. I definitely wouldn't miss it."

"Great, I will see you both later, then."

"Yeah," Emma mumbled back. "See you later."

Snow's concentration on the party had, apparently, caused her to miss the noticeable change in Emma's mood. But it wasn't lost on Tink. As soon as Snow left the station, she turned to the Savior, who was sulking as she stared off into space in deep thought.

"Hey," Tink interrupted her silent contemplation. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Emma insisted. "I'm fine."

"You're sure? Because it doesn't seem like it's nothing."

"I just really hate when she does that."

"Your mom? What'd she do?"

"She made it seem like Regina is a charity case," Emma explained. "I didn't mean I was picking her up out of, like, pity— I'm doing it because we're friends. Did it not come out that way?"

This was an unexpected twist—that Emma seemed to be so disturbed by her mother's interpretation of events.

"I got how you meant it," Tink assured her.

"I think my parents hear what they want to hear when it comes to Regina. I get that they have this insane history with her…but they act like I couldn't possibly get _anything _out of being friends with her, you know?"

"Yeah, I can see that."

"That's how everyone acts, actually," Emma continued. "Except you…but that's because you're friends with Regina, so you get it."

"I guess people wonder what you get out of being friends with her because they don't see the good in her."

"She's teaching me magic," Emma divulged without provocation. "I've learned how to cook pasta and how to get Henry to take me seriously. I mean the kid used to basically laugh at me when I told him he needed to do his homework and stuff."

Tink smiled at the last one in particular. She didn't find it hard to believe that that Regina was the disciplinarian.

"But also, I don't know, I guess I feel safe with her."

"What do you mean?"

"Anywhere else in Storybrooke I'm the Savior and the Sheriff. I feel like I always have to be on guard. If something happens, I'm the person in the room everyone will turn to."

"Right," Tink encouraged her to go on.

"But when I'm with Regina it's not like that. I can just go play videogames with Henry and I don't have to worry about anything. I know if something happened Regina would probably set it on fire before I had time to pull out my gun and shoot it."

"I think what you're saying is that Regina is your equal."

"I guess that's a good way to put it. I mean, she doesn't care that I'm the Savior and, to be honest, I don't care that she was the Evil Queen. I'm just Emma and she's just Regina and we are both just trying to raise a good kid."

"Your parents will come around," Tink promised, awestuck at Emma's heart-felt admission. "Regina proved herself in Neverland, but it's not going to change overnight."

"Yeah," Emma agreed. "Anyway, sorry, I don't usually go off like this."

"Don't worry about it."

_It must be something about Regina, Tink thought, which made Emma more emotional than usual. _

Tinkerbell picked up her phone, desperate to share her thoughts with the only person she could.

**Tink: EMMA HAS IT SO GODDAMN BAD FOR YOUR MOM I WANT TO LOCK HER IN A JAIL CELL UNTIL SHE REALIZES IT. **

**Tink: Also, please don't tell anyone I curse so much in front of you? Thanks and sorry.**

* * *

Henry laughed at Tink's latest message. If she only knew how much Emma slipped with bad language in front of him, she would probably feel a lot better. But right now that wasn't his concern. Instead, he was focused on one thing and one thing only: He needed to get information out of his mom.

Back in the day, during Operation Cobra, Emma had slipped and admitted that she had dated a few women. It didn't bother him a bit—and he hadn't really thought much about it. That is, until now.

Henry wasn't so sure where his mom stood on the possibility, and in order to find out, he was going to have to lie.

He felt bad about it, he honestly did. But it wasn't like before—when he lied to her to sneak around or go behind her back. This time he knew it was for her own good. He was sure Emma was for his mother's own good. And, surprisingly, he thought his mom might Emma's, too.

Taking a deep breath, he knocked on his mother's bedroom door.

"Come in," came the instant reply.

Henry walked into the room and found her standing in her robe near the closet. "Are you looking for an outfit for the party?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Yes, dear, I am."

"You look good in everything," he promised. "So, just pick something."

"Thank you, Henry," she lit up at his compliment before holding out two dresses in front of her. "Which one do you like better?"

"The red one," he quickly decided.

In reality, Henry had no idea which dress looked better or was more appropriate for a birthday party. He only knew that Emma wore red a lot and it would be pretty funny if they showed up in matching colors.

"Then it's settled," she nodded, putting the other dress back in the closet. "But enough about that: How was your day at school?"

This was the predictable question. The one Henry knew was coming—the one that allowed him to so easily manipulate this conversation in order to get what he needed.

"It was alright, I guess."

"Something happened," his mother immediately surmised. Her maternal instincts were rather predictable, too. "What's wrong?"

"Well," Henry began, as he sat down on the bed. "My friend is getting made fun of because people found out she likes girls."

"That's terrible," she noted, as she took a seat next to him.

"I know, right? What's the big deal? I mean, personally I like girls but people shouldn't get made fun of for who they like."

"You're absolutely correct about that—is your teacher aware of what's going on?"

"I don't really know," he shrugged before going in for the kill. "I'm pretty sure Emma dates girls sometimes. Have _you_?"

He carefully studied his mother's face for her reaction—but she remained calm and somewhat stoic. She frowned a little before confessing what he knew to be the honest truth: "Henry, I haven't dated for a long, long time. I'm afraid I've forgotten what it's even like."

"Since Daniel?"

"Yes and I was basically a child then—only a few years older than you are now."

"But would you?" He pressed on, determined to get a concrete answer. "I mean, are you against it?"

"I haven't put much thought into the idea."

For a moment, Henry was afraid he wasn't going to get much more out of her. But then, after a few seconds, she spoke again.

"I suppose that if I were to find someone who _truly_ loved me, despite my past, then I wouldn't care what was on the outside. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah, it makes sense to me," he smiled, feeling victorious and even more excited about the prospect of Operation Wings. "I wish my classmates thought like that."

"Do you want me to speak to Mary-Margaret about your friend? I am sure she could intervene."

"No," Henry replied. "I'll do it."

"I'm proud of you, you know."

"Thanks." He was proud of himself, too. But mostly for being on the inside of Tink's ingenious plan. "When is Emma coming to get you?"

"In an hour or so—would you like me to make you something for dinner before I leave?"

"Granny said she was bringing me food."

"Don't overdose on french fries while I'm gone," she warned. "But, thank you for your help."

Henry knew his mom was talking about her outfit. But he hoped when all was said and done, he would have helped with a lot more.

* * *

Exactly an hour later, Emma rang the doorbell. Brimming with enthusiasm, Henry nearly tripped over his feet sprinting to answer it.

"Hey, kid."

"Hey," he welcomed her, trying to hide the fact that he was out of breath. "My mom should be right down."

"You're going to be good on your own tonight, right?" Emma asked as she followed him into the foyer.

"I'm not alone," he reminded her. "Granny is coming and she'll probably bring her crossbow."

"I know but _still_—call us if you want us to come home, alright?"

Both of his moms had been like this since Neverland: insanely, unnecessarily overprotective. It was truthfully a bit shocking to him that they were even letting this happen. He hadn't spent much time out of their sight in the past few months. And when he did, he was either with his grandparents or with Neal.

Before he could answer - and insist for the hundredth time he was totally good - his mom descended the staircase. Emma seemed at a loss for words as her eyes were glued to the red dress that he had helped pick out.

"Hey, Regina."

"Hello, dear."

"You know this party isn't at the Four Seasons, right?"

"I'm sorry?" Henry's brunette mother looked to Emma with confusion. "I don't understand the reference."

"You literally look like a million bucks."

"Thank you."

"But the thing is we're just going to Granny's."

"Oh?"

"I'm saying you're dressed really fancy for a diner," Emma clarified. "Do you have jeans you can put on?"

Henry instantly felt terrible. If only Emma knew how much thought had gone into the outfit. Maybe he should've realized the dress was too much. But what did he know? This was how his mom _always _looked.

"You don't have to if you don't want to; I was just trying to help."

"No, thank you for telling me," Regina nodded. "But you'll have to give me a minute to change."

Based on the afternoon, Henry was pretty sure it was going to take longer than a minute.

* * *

Tink was dying to know why Regina and Emma were late - or why Henry wasn't texting her back. She was somewhere between annoyed and slightly worried that they weren't going to show up after all.

In order to distract herself, Tinkerbell sat at the counter happily conversing with some of the guests. Despite her particular motives for being there, she was actually enjoying getting to know the citizens of Storybrooke.

Finally, at 7:35 PM, the door opened and Emma and Regina walked into the diner. Tink wasn't surprised at the way the entire party literally stopped to stare at them. Not only was their relationship still a mystery to most, but they also were undoubtedly the two hottest people in town.

Emma was wearing jeans that might as well have been painted on. On top, she was wearing a sheer red blouse, with her black bra clearly visible underneath. Regina was wearing equally tight black pants with a silk purple button-up. She was also sporting heels Tink doubted any other human being on earth could actually walk in. But, somehow, Regina made it seem as though she was walking on air.

Once they made it inside, Emma was immediately grabbed by her mother and father, who insisted on speaking with her. Without Emma by her side, Regina made her way over to Tink, surely the only other person at the party to whom she wished to speak.

"You look different," Tink told her, as Regina took her seat.

"I was wearing a dress but Emma said I looked too fancy."

_And, of course, _Tink thought,_ you had to change because your wife told you to. _

"I'm sure she was right—you always look pretty fancy. You looked like you were running for office in the middle of Neverland."

"Does this look bad?" The former queen gestured at her attire. "I had to pull something together at the last minute."

"You look great; if your soul mate is here tonight, they'll definitely be drooling."

"I trust you'll follow the puddle then?" Regina quipped.

"You know I will," Tink promised, although she was pretty sure she wouldn't have to look too far.

"What do you want to drink?" Emma asked as she suddenly reappeared and gently rested her hand on Regina's elbow. "I'm buying."

Tink tried not to be too offended that Emma hadn't extended the offer. She would happily buy her own drinks so long as she could observe her two oblivious friends pretend not to be in love all night.

* * *

It was amazing how quickly Snow's meticulously planned, innocent gathering deteriorated into a hot, drunken mess. But, somehow, around 9 pm the party-goers collectively decided that it was time to play a game.

"OK," Ruby explained to the group, who sat on in the middle of the floor in a circle. "So everybody knows the rules, right? You spin the bottle and you kiss whoever it lands on."

"Wait—this involves kissing?" Regina rolled her eyes, not at all amused by the revelation. "No, thank you."

"It's too late!" Tink objected, so very desperate to see how it would end. She wasn't about to let Regina get out of this—especially not when Emma was sitting right next to her. "You're already in the circle!"

"But this is completely juvenile."

"That's sort of the point," Emma told her. "I promise it won't kill you to be juvenile for a few minutes."

"Fine," Regina conceded, allowing the game to begin without further protest.

The interesting thing about magic was that even though Tink no longer had it, she could still _feel_ it.

Which was how she knew, almost immediately, that Regina was using her magic to fuck around with the spinning bottle.

If it ever looked as if it was about to land on her (like it did when it was Neal's turn) it mysteriously kept on spinning. Tink also highly suspected that Regina had a little something to do with Snow's bottle landing on Grumpy, instead of her charming husband.

The other interesting aspect about magic was that Tink knew Regina's was entirely distinct— so strong and seasoned it was easily distinguished from other users. Which was how Tink knew, almost immediately, that Regina _wasn't _using magic to fuck with the bottle when it was finally Emma's turn.

But someone else _was_ using magic as The Savior's bottle spun.

Tink's eye-line shot to the blonde, who seemed to be concentrating entirely too hard on the game. Although the fairy was sure Emma was doing so unconsciously, she was definitely controlling the direction of the bottle.

When it inevitably landed on Regina, it was one of those clarifying moments that was shocking, and yet not-at-all surprising, at the same time.

The magic in Emma's system had willed this—what more of a confirmation did Tinkerbell need? She had been right, she wasn't crazy, and this wasn't some far-fetched story she had concocted out of desperation.

"She spins again," Snow quickly declared. "Because she got a woman, right?"

Tink nearly snorted at how ridiculous Emma's mother sounded. But she also noted something else: Why would Snow be so desperate to prevent an innocent kiss, if she didn't suspect there was something more going on?

"There are no rules about that, Mary-Margaret," Emma followed up. "It's really not a big deal."

Regina was silent through the debate, which was completely out of character. Tink knew the prospect of anyone else kissing her would've made Regina rise in a huff and storm away. But instead the former queen sat quietly holding her breath looking somewhat petrified at the thought of what was about to occur.

Emma turned to Regina and suddenly looked like she didn't know what to do with her hands. She shook them out and then, ultimately, settled them on the brunette's shoulders. Regina was frozen in place as Emma leaned in and gently pressed their lips together.

Tink was surprised she didn't sprout wings out of her back right then and there. The diner was so silent she could hear herself think; everyone stared at the two women and took in the palpable chemistry between them.

"Can I take a picture of this?" Hook drunkenly joked, as Emma's lips lingered for longer than any other kiss in the game thus far. "Because I'm pretty sure I've never seen a more beautiful sight."

Tink was inclined to agree, although her reasons were definitely less perverted.

* * *

After a few more rounds of Spin the Bottle, Regina made her way back to the counter. She was clearly not interested in the next game: Truth or Dare. Apparently she had learned her lesson about involving herself in events she had never heard of.

But Tink stuck around in the circle and watched a series of absurdities that had Ruby admitting her crush on Dr. Whale and Neal pulling off an impressive keg-stand.

When it was Hook's turn, he quickly devoted his attention to Emma. "Truth or dare, love."

"Dare," Emma responded without hesitation. She was wearing a smug grin that signaled she wasn't afraid of whatever he was about to throw at her.

"I dare you to kiss the most attractive person in Storybrooke."

"Just, like, objectively speaking?"

"You heard the dare, Swan," the pirate clarified. "Now it's up to you to make a judgment."

"Alright," Emma nodded in approval. "I hear you."

Emma stood up and swiftly walked passed Hook. Tink held her breath—but then the Savior walked straight passed Neal as well. She made her way to the counter, until she was standing directly in front of Regina.

Determined to not miss a word, Tinkerbell followed closely behind her.

"I'm really sorry," Emma said as she shuffled her feet. "But I got dared, so I have to."

"What does that mean, dear?"

Without further explanation, Emma leaned in and kissed Regina once again.

This time, the kiss was a bit half-assed. It was as though in the seconds before, Emma lost her nerve. The Savior's lips landed on the corner of Regina's mouth for a quick but affectionate peck.

"Sorry," Emma muttered before practically running back to the circle. "Thanks!"

"What was the game?" a shell-shocked Regina asked Tink.

"Hook dared her to kiss the most attractive person in town. Clearly his plan to make her pick between him and Neal backfired."

"Well," Regina straightened her back, trying to regain her composure. "I'm happy Emma is comfortable enough with our friendship to know I would gladly help her escape those imbeciles."

"Right, sure; that _must _be it."

* * *

After Snow had declared they had played enough games for one night, the crowd went back to mingling and dancing. For a while, Tink lost sight of both Regina and Emma as the fairy happily chatted with some of her new friends.

When she took a break to get something to drink, she noticed Regina sitting alone, head resting on the counter. Worried something was amiss, she made her way over.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't feel well," Regina slurred without lifting her head.

"You look like you had a lot to drink."

"No," Regina objected to the accusation, peeking out from beneath her arms. "I only had two."

"Are you sure?"

"Can you please find Emma? I want to go home."

"Yeah," Tink searched the room and then promptly waved her over. "She's right there."

Emma appeared next to Regina faster than seemed humanly possible. "You alright?" The Savior inquired, noticing the former queen's odd behavior. "When the hell did you get so wasted?"

"She says that's only her second drink," Tink reported. "When we went out last week she had, like, four and could walk in a straight line."

"I had one when we got here. One now," Regina recalled before finally lifting her head. "Emma, I don't feel well."

"Hey, it's alright, you're OK," the blonde gently soothed. "Why don't we go get you some air, huh?"

"Yes—yes, air is good."

Regina stood up but wobbled on her feet. "I'm dizzy," she complained as she leaned against Emma for support.

"You're fine, I've got you, I promise."

Emma held nearly all of Regina's weight as she tried to carry her toward the door. But after merely two steps, Regina collapsed into The Savior's arms.

The look on Emma's face as she held Regina up was more telling than any number of kisses. The fairy had never seen such sheer and utter panic in someone's eyes.

And considering that Regina was unconscious for seemingly no explainable reason at all, Tink was starting to feel a rush of panic overcome her as well.


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry this took FOREVER! School has been uncharacteristically crazy. I hope you enjoy the update. The next chapter is already half written so it shouldn't be as long of a wait. **

* * *

Snow White and Prince Charming rushed to Emma the moment Regina collapsed. Acting quicker than Tink could even process, David scooped the former-queen into his arms and the royal family pushed their way through the crowd of captivated observers and outside into the cool, Maine air. Tink raced after them, refusing to leave Regina's side.

"What the hell happened?" The prince demanded as he glanced down at the limp, unresponsive woman in his arms.

"I-I don't even…I don't know," Emma fumbled over her words. "She said she felt dizzy and then she just blacked out."

In that moment, Emma looked like anything but a 'Savior.' Instead, the blonde appeared helpless and petrified as she anxiously watched her mother press a cold water bottle against Regina's forehead.

"Wake up," Snow begged, as her own voice shook with fear. "Come on, Regina."

Tink was pretty sure it wasn't the reaction _most_ people would have to the collapse of their enemy. Perhaps Snow White was not most people—and, perhaps, her infamous feud with the former-queen was more complex than it appeared on the surface.

"You guys," Emma spoke up, as she slowly began to regain her bearings, "it honestly seems like someone roofied her."

"Roofied?" Snow questioned. "What does that mean, sweetheart?"

"You seriously don't know? This naïve fairy-tale world drives me completely fucking mad sometimes."

"I'm sorry," her mother offered, though she clearly didn't understand the reason for the outburst. "Please, just tell us."

"I'm saying someone drugged her. It happened to my friend in Boston once at a bar—it looked _exactly _like this—she was fine until she wasn't."

"Oh."

"You really think someone in Storybrooke would do that?" David challenged. "Or would even_ think_ to do that? Maybe she has the flu or she's dehydrated."

"Then why isn't she waking up?" Tink interjected, certain the explanation didn't make sense. "Because I saw plenty of sick and dehydrated Lost Boys pass out in my day and none of them stayed down for this long."

"We're wasting time when she obviously needs medical attention," Emma put her foot down and, finally, took control. "Enough discussion: who is sober enough to drive to the hospital?'

"I am," David assured them. "Let's go."

* * *

Tink and Emma got into the back seat of Snow's car. David gently placed Regina in Emma's arms before getting behind the wheel; his wife sat in the passenger's side but instantly turned around to keep her eyes glued on their unconscious patient.

The Savior cradled the former-queen as if she was the world's most precious cargo; she kept a secure and protective grasp around Regina's waist. Tink, wanting to help out in whatever small way she could, carefully removed her friend's sky-high heels.

David quickly turned on the ignition and backed out of the diner's parking lot; as the car began to move Regina's eyes softly fluttered open. "_Emma_," she weakly whispered, "are we going home?"

"You're awake," Emma's entire being lit up with relief. "No, we're taking you to a doctor—we need to figure out why you feel so sick."

"No doctor," Regina protested, her gaze remaining solely on Emma; she didn't—or couldn't—move a single muscle otherwise. "I want to see Henry."

"You'll see him as soon as you feel better."

"I didn't iron his clothes for tomorrow."

"That's OK, he'll manage."

"Emma, keep her talking if you can," Snow instructed. "We need to try and keep her awake."

"Ugh," Regina groaned at the sound of the woman's voice. "Is that your mother?"

"It is; my parents are driving."

"She is…" Regina began but quickly trailed off as if she lost the strength to complete the sentence.

"She's what?"

"So annoying."

"I am," Snow agreed. "Actually, let's have a _long_ conversation about how annoying I am. Regina, you can start. I bet you have a lot to say, don't you?"

_"Brat." _

"Yes, I'm a brat," she accepted the insult in stride. "What else? Anyone?"

"She actually leaves her stuff everywhere," David chimed in, immediately understanding the attempt to keep Regina engaged and distracted. "I'm a prince, not a maid."

"She is probably the nosiest person I've ever met," Emma added. "I mean, I can't so much as send an email without her wanting to know who it was to."

Snow looked at Tink as if it were her turn. Though the fairy certainly respected the tacit, she didn't feel comfortable participating. "Yeah, sorry," she told them. "I don't think I know you well enough to play this game."

"Regina that means it's your turn again," Snow stated with determination. "Go on, let's hear it."

"_The-worst_," was all the brunette managed to mumble before she closed her eyes.

"You can totally do better than that," Emma nudged her back awake. "As someone who has been on the receiving end of your most creative insults, I know you've got more in you."

"Did you kiss me?" Regina suddenly asked, apparently done talking about her disdain for Snow White. "Or am I on drugs?"

"It's possible that both are true," the Savior sheepishly admitted. "Actually, can you try to remember who gave you your second drink tonight?"

"Mhmmmok," Regina incoherently grumbled. "Car is spinning."

"Don't worry—we're almost there."

"I'm _not_ worried, Emma."

"Because you're braver than you even know and not scared of anything."

"I'm scared of losing my family."

"You're never going to lose Henry."

"Henry," Regina repeated their son's name. And then, out of seemingly nowhere, she made an addition to the list of her family: "_Also, you_."

Regina slowly lifted her hand and reached up to Emma's shoulder; she firmly grasped onto the sheer material of the Savior's shirt as if it was the only thing keeping her alive.

The gravity of her admission rendered both the Charmings speechless as they waited for their daughter to respond.

"That—that won't happen either," Emma promised. "We're a good team, right?"

But, this time, silence was Regina's only reply.

"Hey, keep talking to me; we can go back to how annoying Mary-Margaret is."

"Shit," Emma cursed when the brunette's eyes rolled to the back of her head before she was, once more, rendered unconscious. "No—stay with me."

"What the hell was that?" Tink felt nauseous at the sight of her friend in such a terrifying state. "What just happened to her?"

"Dad," Emma shrieked. "You _have_ to drive faster."

* * *

Tink sat nervously in the hospital waiting room as she repeatedly bounced her leg up and down. Though she had probably only been there thirty minutes, she felt like it had been thirty years.

"How's Regina?" A disheveled Neal suddenly stood before her. "Is she OK?"

His presence caused Tink to realize just how out of it she was: she hadn't even noticed him entering the room.

"They don't know yet. They can't find anything wrong with her but she won't wake up and her vitals are low. David just went to call your Dad—in case it's magic and not medical."

"Oh."

"I hope he gets here soon," Tink ranted, just happy to have someone to talk to. "She looked so terrible on the car ride over here. I don't think I've ever seen anyone look so bad."

"Tinkerbell," Neal sat down next to her. "I need to talk to you about something."

"What?"

"You're going to be really pissed," he prefaced. "And I'm sorry."

"Why would I be pissed?"

"The other day when I was with Henry—he wouldn't get off his phone," Neal tentatively began; sweat dripped from his forehead onto the armrest of the chair. "I thought maybe he's got a girlfriend, or something. So, when he went to the bathroom I looked at his messages; I saw that he was texting you."

"Yeah, we talk sometimes; so what?"

"You think Emma is Regina's soul-mate."

He tossed the words at her as if he was accusing her of murder. Her brain was on overload already and this was truly the last thing she needed. Part of her was pissed she had been caught—but more than that, she knew this wasn't the time to be talking about anyone's love life. Not when Regina was in such serious trouble.

"Look, Neal, I really don't see how that's relevant at the moment. This is hardly the place for us to argue."

"I had to know if it was true," he continued. "Because it all started to make sense: how much time they've been spending together. I have enough competition with Hook…."

"Wait," When Tink realized the story was starting to sound an awful lot like a confession her cheeks flushed red with anger. "What the hell did you do to her?"

"I just…I put truth serum in her drink. I was going to ask her how she feels about Emma."

"You put a spell in her drink so you could interrogate her about your ex-girlfriend?"

"It was only truth serum," Neal defended. "You have to understand, I don't even like magic—I would never use something that could hurt anyone; this is one of the most harmless spells in the universe."

"And Regina is one of the most powerful people I've ever met. So, if you used such a harmless spell, why exactly is she currently fighting for her life?"

"I don't know; that's why I came here—when she passed out, I freaked. I don't want anything to happen to her."

"Yeah?" The fairy furiously mocked. "'Cause you've got a funny way of showing it."

"Are people allergic to certain types of magic? Could she just be having a bad reaction?"

Tink had been out of the magic game for a long time, but she had never heard of anyone having an allergic-reaction to a spell. Before she had time to respond to his far-fetched idea, Gold walked into the room and quickly made his way over to the pair.

"What's going on?" He asked them. "David said that Regina collapsed?"

Tink waited for Neal to inform his father of what he had done. But, instead, the former Lost-Boy sat silently and stared down at his feet.

Tink knew that Regina needed her—she couldn't wait around for Neal to grow a pair and take ownership of his mistake.

"Regina drank the truth serum that was in your shop," she explained. "And now she won't wake up."

"But there is no truth serum in my shop."

"Of course there is," Neal rebutted. "I've seen it before: on the left side of the room—top shelf—labeled T.S."

"T.S. stands for toxic substance," Gold corrected. "And for my grandson's sake, I _really_ hope you're not suggesting that Regina drank it."

"She _did_!" Tink jumped up from her chair as if it was on fire. "It was in her drink."

"Where is she?"

"First room on the right," The fairy pointed down the hall before taking off behind him.

"Wait," Neal grabbed her by the elbow, stopping her in her tracks. "You can't tell them it was me."

"Like hell I can't," she barked back and freed herself from his grasp.

"You can't do this," he pleaded, as his eyes brimmed with guilt-ridden tears. Henry will never forgive me. It was an accident—please. I didn't mean for this to happen."

"Your intentions are irrelevant to the fact that you poisoned my friend."

"How will you even explain it without blowing your secret?"

The subtext behind his words was clear: this was _her_ fault, too.

"Listen to me very carefully: if Regina dies, I will personally make sure you are held accountable."

"And if she lives? Because she _will_—my dad will help her."

"Then I'll keep your secret," Tink decided. "But only on one condition."

"What is it?"

"You have to stop chasing after Emma for good. Your quest to get her back is clearly past the point of being healthy for _anyone_ involved."

"But—I…"

"Do you really think you're in the best position to negotiate right now?"

"OK," he accepted her verdict. "You're right. I'm sorry."

"Go home," she spat. "You've done more than enough damage for one night."

* * *

Tink sprinted into Regina's hospital room with one thing weighing heavily on her mind: technically speaking, this _was_ her fault.

If she hadn't been trying so hard to get Regina and Emma together—if she hadn't involved Henry—then Neal never would've found out and none of this would have happened. All she wanted to do was make Regina's life better. Instead, she had put it in the line.

"What is it?" Snow frantically questioned as Gold stood stoically next to Regina's bed. "What's wrong with her?"

"She was poisoned with an extremely toxic spell."

"So someone_ did_ spike her drink," Emma processed, unable to wipe the devastated look off her face. "But with magic instead of drugs?"

"Yes," Gold confirmed. "And I'm worried that it's been her in system too long….that it's had time to do significant damage."

Gold waved his hands over the bed and visible magic poured out from his fingertips. The mist completely surrounded the former-queen's body—but when it dissipated it seemed to have had no effect.

"It's not working?" David concluded. "Why isn't it working?"

"Believe it or not, I think I'm going to need some assistance from our resident Savior."

"Me?" Emma took a step forward and shot Gold a questioning look. "How can I help?"

"You need to jolt start her system; a magical version of CPR, if you will."

"But why don't you do it? You're way more experienced with this kind of stuff."

"That is technically true," Gold agreed. "But we need to use elements of Regina's very own magic—you've mixed your magic with hers on multiple occasions. That means you likely have some of it within you."

"But how the hell do I—like—get it out of me?"

"You need to focus; you know the very essence of her magic. Try to think about what it felt like when you deactivated the trigger, for instance."

Emma, filled with self-doubt, approached Regina's bedside. She held out her palms, mimicking Gold's actions. But nothing, not even miniscule sparks, appeared from her fingers.

"I- I can't," Emma frowned, disgusted with her failure. "The irony is that Regina could make me do it right. She would know how to get me to do this."

"I don't mean to pressure you, dearie, but this is, quite literally, a life or death situation for your son's mother."

Tink knew she had to do _something._ She didn't have Emma's magic—but she still had a responsibility to help.

"What does Regina always tell you during your lessons?" She asked Emma, hoping she could provide motivation. "If she could talk to you right now, what would she tell you to do?"

"To use my anger and my emotions," Emma stated without missing a beat.

"Aren't you angry that someone tried to kill her?"

Truthfully, Tink was channeling her _own_ anger in order to incite Emma. The fairy was mad at everyone from Blue, to Neal, to herself. Regina didn't deserve this—it wasn't fair that every single time the woman tried to make an effort to better herself, she ended up in worse condition than she started.

"Yeah, of course; I'm furious."

"Try again," Snow encouraged. "You can do this, sweetheart."

"No," Emma amended. "I _have_ to do this."

The Savior held out her hands and shut her eyes in what looked like painful concentration.

"I cannot raise Henry without you, Regina," she seethed. This time, as Emma spoke, purple energy blasted out of her fingers. "We didn't take down Peter Pan for you to be killed by some douchebag at a party."

The magic flowed out of Emma and Regina's body arched upwards towards it like a magnet. Elements of blue and purple mixed together and the power of it was palpable. It was, undoubtedly, the most intense magic Tink had ever felt.

Seconds later, Regina violently sprung up in bed—her eyes shot open as she panted, her lungs desperately seeking oxygen. She still looked frighteningly like death—with glazed eyes and clammy skin—but she _was _breathing.

Simultaneously, Emma flung backwards and her body smashed against the white hospital wall. The thud that resulted made it obvious she would inevitably be covered in bruises.

Snow rushed to Regina's side while David ran to help his daughter off the floor.

Tink exhaled in relief; the sight of Regina's revival broke what was left of her fragile emotions. She felt tears run down her face as she realized her friend wasn't going to die because of what she had done.

On the contrary, Regina was alive because Emma used their connection to save her.

But what deeper meaning that held didn't quite matter at the moment. What mattered was this was way too close a call.

* * *

"All I want is to go home," a cranky but now fully-awake Regina demanded. "I don't think that is an unreasonable request."

"Mr. Gold said you need twenty-four hour supervision for a few days," a young nurse informed her. "We can give you that if you stay here."

Emma, Snow and Tink remained in the room while Regina argued with the poor woman who was just trying to do her job. But the former-queen was as stubborn as always and refused to accept what she was being told.

"I don't care what Gold said; I am not staying and that is final. And, truthfully, I'm not sure what right you have to tell me what to do—it was_ Emma_ who saved me. This hospital has been essentially useless."

"But someone still needs to sign you out if you're leaving before the recommended release time; that's our policy."

"I'll do it," Emma volunteered. "I'll sign her out and take her home."

"I'm sorry, Sheriff Swan. I truly don't mean to make things difficult but only a family member can sign her out."

"Yeah and Regina's my…"

Tink was certain Emma was thinking about what Regina had said in the car—that they were, in fact, family. But the Savior's attempt to explain their relationship was failing miserably and her silence was verging on awkward.

"We have a kid together," she finally finished the thought. "That has to count."

"You'd be assuming responsibility for her."

"I understand," Emma nodded as she accepted the form the nurse handed her. "Regina, you'll come back to the apartment so we can make sure nothing happens to you."

"No," Regina defiantly crossed her arms. "I said I want to go _home, _not to Charming hell."

"But it's a lot easier for us to keep an eye on you in the apartment," Emma justified her reasoning. "It's what's best for now and it's definitely what Henry would want."

"One night only."

"Make it two and you've got yourself a deal."

Regina nodded and Emma signed the paper; it served as official documentation that Team-Moms was back together.

* * *

As Emma settled Regina into the apartment, Snow assigned everyone tasks: Tink was sent to the Mifflin Street to pick up Regina's things while David went to get Henry from Granny's care.

When the fairy walked back into the Charmings' apartment with Regina's overnight bag, her heart nearly melted at what she found.

An exhausted Regina was in bed passed out on top of Emma with her entire face snuggled into the crook of the blonde's neck. Emma, who was also fast asleep, had both her hands resting on the small of Regina's back.

Tink smiled genuinely for the first time all night: Regina was safe and sound with her own personal savior. Never had she been so sure that Regina and Emma belonged together—but never had she been so _unsure_ of what to do about that fact. So far, her intervention had hurt far more than it had helped.

"Were you able to find all of the things she'll need?"

Tinkerbelle nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of Snow's voice. With her attention focused solely on the slumbering women, she hadn't noticed Emma's mother standing by the stove.

"Oh, Hey," Tink walked over to her. "Yeah, it was no problem."

"I figured I would make some food," Snow gestured down to the pasta she was cooking. "Regina will probably be hungry when she wakes up—Emma, too."

"That's a nice idea."

Silence overtook them as Tink sat down at the kitchen table. She had never spent time alone with Snow and small talk didn't come easy to her. She searched her mind for a benign subject to talk about but Emma's mother spoke up before she could.

"You and Regina are pretty close, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I would say that."

"Would you mind if I asked you something then?"

"Go ahead."

"OK," Snow took a deep breath as she sat down at the table across from Tink. "I just need to know: are Regina and Emma sleeping together?"

"_What?_"

Tinkerbell didn't have to feign her shock—her surprise, of course, was not at the suggestion but at _who_ it was coming from. First Neal and now Snow White: she quite clearly sucked at _secret_ operations.

"Sometimes Emma goes over there for dinner and doesn't come back until the next morning. And it's been happening more and more lately. I just want to know the truth."

"The truth is that Emma has a tendency to pass out on Regina's couch. In her defense, it is a comfortable couch."

"But it just seems as though it's not their first time…." Snow gestured towards the bed, "…in that, um, position."

That much was true—Regina, usually so guarded, looked like she had spent an eternity sleeping on top of Emma—like it was, perhaps, her happy place.

"They're not sleeping together," Tink stated the facts. "Regina would've told me and Emma would've told you."

"Maybe."

Snow appeared to be considering if, realistically, her daughter would share that information with her. As she did, Tink realized she had an opportunity to get an answer to something she couldn't stop thinking about.

"You know, for all I've heard about how much you and Regina hate each other, you seemed really devastated when her life was hanging in the balance."

"I care about Regina," Snow admitted. "Truthfully I forget just how much I care about her until I'm forced to realize it."

"So then why do you seem so disturbed by the thought that Emma cares about her, too?"

"It doesn't disturb me that Emma cares about her—she clearly does and that's a good thing. I'm just…"

"Disturbed by the thought of them sleeping together?"

"I don't know—maybe a little bit."

It wasn't the screaming, outraged reaction Tink would've expected. Snow was serene and seemingly conflicted as she considered the possibility of her daughter and her former enemy being more than just friends.

"Honestly, Snow, my advice would be to cross that bridge when you get to it."

"When?" She questioned as Tink quickly realized her mistake. The fairy made it seem as though it was an inevitable fact—a moment that was just around the corner.

"No, sorry; I meant if."

Snow opened her mouth to respond but the sound of Regina stirring caused both of them to stand up and make their way into the living room.

* * *

Regina sat up in bed eating Snow's freshly made pasta while Emma paced back and forth by her bedside.

"I feel like I should go into the station," the Savior stated.

"It's late," Regina reminded her. "Besides, Henry is on his way over here as we speak."

"But I want to start investigating. Someone at that party_ had _to have seen who did this."

"You're wasting your time."

"By trying to find out who poisoned you?!"

"Yes—I'm OK now; so what does it matter?"

"Uh, is this a trick question?" Emma stopped walking and placed her hands on her hips. "Someone tried to kill you at a mermaid's birthday party."

"I know, dear, I was there. But I don't want you seeking vengeance on my behalf."

"It's not vengeance; it's justice."

"I told myself the same thing when I was trying to take down your mother."

"I invited you to that party and someone used it as an opportunity to try to murder you. I'm really uncomfortable with how close they came to succeeding."

"You blame yourself?" Regina surmised. "Because you invited me?"

"I want to find out who did it," Emma side-stepped the question. "I'm the Sheriff and that's my job."

"No, it's not about being Sheriff," Regina called her bluff. "You're taking it personally which means you're not the right person for the task."

"I am so."

"I meant what I said in Neverland," the former queen continued, immune to Emma's childish response. "If we need to do something dark, that's _my_ job. Your heart is pure and it's not just because of your parents' true love. It's because of the choices you make every single day. We need to defend that goodness for Henry's sake. It balances out the fact that my heart is, well… you know."

"I already told you to stop with that crap—your heart is just fine."

"You getting wrapped up in this whole thing in the name of revenge is a truly terrible idea; please trust me on that."

"I do trust you—but I don't trust whoever did this. You want to talk about what's best for Henry? What if they try again? 'Cause I know for sure that losing you is not best for him."

"I believe people wanting to kill me is part of the risk I take living in a town where I tried to destroy everyone's lives," Regina quipped. "There's nothing you can do to change that."

"Yeah, see, that doesn't make me feel better."

"Besides, if you're forcing me to stay in this horrible apartment the least you could do is not abandon me here," Regina said, with what almost looked like a pout. "And frankly I'm concerned I'm going to die of boredom before this mysterious killer strikes again."

"Alright," Emma gave in, unable to resist the thinly veiled attempt to make her stay. "I can ask David to work the case for now. Is that a good compromise?"

"Yes, I suppose that would be acceptable."

"Do you want to play a game, or something? To ease the boredom?"

"I don't know," Regina innocently shrugged. "Normally I would say yes, but the last two games I was involved with resulted in you kissing me."

"I swear I'll keep my lips to myself this time," Emma smirked. "How about a game of cards?"

"Very well."

Emma sat back down the bed. Unsurprisingly, she situated herself unnecessarily close to Regina. Tink had become accustomed to watching them find a way to be as close as physically possible.

"So do you remember any of it?" The Savior questioned, as she shuffled the deck of cards she had pulled out from the dresser. "Like do you—uh-remember the car ride to the hospital?"

"The last thing I remember is talking to you at Granny's."

"Oh."

"Why? Did something happen on the ride there?"

"You called Mary-Margaret a brat," Emma recalled. "I was just wondering."

Tink understood quiet clearly what she was wondering—she was wondering if Regina remembered her confession: the powerful queen wasn't afraid of dying—but she _was_ afraid of losing Emma.

"I wish I could remember insulting your mother but I can't say that I do."

"Maybe you will at some point—maybe it will come back."

"Are you going to deal or not?"

The attempt to change the subject so abruptly made Tink wonder if, maybe, Regina remembered all too well.

* * *

A little while later, Tink decided to call it a night and head home: the Charming apartment was crowded enough and she had done all she could do to help. After saying goodbye to Regina, Emma and Snow she made her way down the steps.

In the downstairs hallway, she ran directly into David and Henry.

"I'll be right up," Henry turned to Charming when he noticed his partner-in-crime. "I just want to talk to Tinkerbell for a second."

An extremely exhausted David merely nodded before heading up the stairs, no further questions asked.

When Tink looked down into Henry's eyes, she felt guilty all-over again. This boy had almost lost his mother tonight—he wouldn't have even made it in time to say goodbye.

"I'm so sorry," she offered as she pulled him in for a hug. It surprised her just how much she was growing to care about Regina and Emma's kid. "This night was so messed up."

"But David said she's OK now," Henry hugged her back. "He said Emma healed her."

"He's right," Tink confirmed as they parted. "Emma did an amazing job."

"You _do_ get what all of this means, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

"It means we're on the right path and someone doesn't want us to be," Henry told her. "That's probably why my mom got poisoned in the first place."

"I doubt that's what happened."

Tink was losing track of the secrets she was keeping—there was, literally, no one she wasn't lying to at the moment. Regina and Emma couldn't know about the operation to get them together. Henry couldn't know what Neal had done when he found out about it. Never in her life had she felt more in over her head.

"It's _definitely_ what happened," Henry insisted. "Someone doesn't want them together."

"Then maybe we should take a break," Tink suggested. "I don't want either of your moms to get hurt."

"A break?!" Henry exclaimed with obvious outrage. "But they're in love!"

"I know that."

And, she did: she knew it now more than ever.

"Plus, this is the closest you've ever been to getting your wings and you want to give up?"

"I don't _want_ to give up."

"Can't you see? We're right on schedule: Bad things always happen right before the good things. The heroes always get tested just before they win. We just have to keep believing."

They were nice words—it was a comforting concept. But she didn't know how credible it was. The reality of her life had made her a skeptic.

"So, you think this is our test?"

"I know it is—and I'd rather do this with you but I'm willing to do it without you, too. Are you abandoning the operation or not?"

"I don't know," she considered. "I want them to be happy."

"We can't let someone bully us into stopping. And they are clearly never going to be happy unless we make them realize what they feel. Plus, I think I have just the trick—I had a light-bulb moment on the drive over here."

"What's your idea?"

She couldn't kill her curiosity. She couldn't stop the nagging feeling in her gut that was telling her, despite what had happened, it was too late to turn around.

"Well, it involves my school dance and an enchanted dream-catcher."

"What the hell does that even mean?"

"We can't talk here," Henry reminded her. "So if you're still in, meet me tomorrow morning at our spot in the library."

Maybe Henry had a point—maybe the most rewarding experiences in life didn't come easy.

Or maybe Henry was just a cocky pre-teen boy who was going to end getting them all into deep shit.

But there was only one way to find out.

She was kidding herself if she thought if she wasn't going to show up at the library to find out Henry's next move.

* * *

**PS: two things- 1) I want to be clear that Neal's regret is genuine (though his decision was stupid and careless). And, without giving too much away, I want to suggest that there may be more to the story. In other words, his part in the bigger picture is more than just a device to move along the plot! 2) This chapter is exactly what Henry suggested, a test. Next chapter will get back to more of the ridiculous antics and fluff. Hope you liked it! Let me know! xo-Dakota **


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you, thank you, thank you for the reviews and follows :) I'm really glad that you're enjoying the story and I think you'll like this next update. Forever grateful to FlyYouFools for the beta-love. Let me know what you think and happy season3b, everyone! - Dakota **

* * *

"Good morning, Storybrooke's finest."

Much to Tink and Emma's astonishment, Regina appeared at the Sheriff's Station dressed from head-to-toe in her normal attire. It had been a mere four days since the incident at Ariel's party but somehow the former queen already looked fully recovered: perfectly coiffed hair, color in her cheeks, exquisite makeup. She was sporting a white button-down shirt, gray blazer, black pencil skirt, and her notorious heels.

Two days earlier, Regina left the Charmings' apartment and returned to her own home where she was supposed to be on bedrest, though the key phrase in this instance was: _supposed to be. _Tink hadn't seen the former-queen since she left the Charmings but was quite confident she was being taken care of. The fairy received regular text-message updates from Henry detailing the many times Emma stopped by to 'check-in' on Regina (but ended up staying all night).

"No," Emma jumped up from her seat the second she heard Regina's voice. "What the hell? You're not supposed to leave the house!"

"I am aware of that," Regina quickly rebutted. "But I needed to speak with you."

"So, what? I've got an office phone and a cell phone."

"I needed fresh air and a walk. Please don't chastise me — I feel fine."

"Look, I get that you're going stir-crazy but you were _poisoned_. Gold said you should wait a week before resuming normal activities. Plus, I'm not sure you can justify walking here in those heels. I swear I saw a pair of flats in your closet. If you were going to break the rules you could've at least worn those."

"Stay out of my closet."

_Come out of the closet! _Tink internally quipped as she practically rolled her eyes at their flirtatious exchange.

"You're seriously impossible," Emma noted with a playful sigh. "Will you at least sit in my chair so we can pretend you're resting?"

"Very well," Regina agreed, sitting down behind the Sheriff's desk. She took a few seconds to get comfortable before she crossed her legs, batted her lashes and looked up at Emma. "Are you satisfied?"

_Well, she will be if you come out of the goddamn closet, _Tink thought. Because, really, their ability to make normal, everyday conversation seem like foreplay was unparalleled.

"Yes," Emma approved. "Thank you."

The Savior then hoisted herself up on top of her desk; perched on the edge, legs hanging off, she faced the brunette. "Now, what did you need to talk to me about _so _badly, huh?"

"It appears that Henry has signed us up to chaperone his school's dance."

Tink bit her lip holding back nerves, enthusiasm and skepticism. Operation Wings, "Phase Dreamcatcher" (Henry's name, of course), was about to commence.

"He did? That's weird."

"Why is it weird, dear?"

"Because what kind of pre-teenage boy wants his parents at a school dance?"

"He was on the student committee that organized the event."

"Yeah, fine, but it's bad enough to have one parent chaperone and he asked us both?"

"Perhaps he simply didn't want to have to pick between us."

"OK, but, seriously, his grandmother will already be there because she works there, which means David will probably go. Now he wants us there, too?"

"Are you suggesting Henry should be embarrassed of us?" Regina questioned. "His grandparents I can understand, but not us."

"No, I'm not saying he should be embarrassed of anyone," Emma clarified. "It just doesn't make sense. Why would he want us supervising him trying to awkwardly ask girls to dance?"

"Maybe his friends think you're hot?" Tink suggested, attempting to save her partner in crime. They always somehow underestimated Emma's innate ability to sense when something wasn't quite right. But Tink had also come to learn she could distract The Savior with Regina's attractiveness all too easily.

"Maybe," Emma smirked as she gestured toward the brunette. "I mean, that _would _definitely make sense."

"Should we not go then?" Regina wondered, ignoring the compliment. She was preoccupied with the idea that she might have overlooked something amiss in her son's request.

"If he asked us to do it, we'll do it," Emma concluded. "I personally don't get it but I'm not going to question him wanting us around. Who knows how long that will last; I say we milk it, right?"

"I agree."

Emma nodded as if to signify the mothers had come to a final decision. But just as she did, the incessantly loud ringing of the Sheriff's line interrupted them.

"Hold on a second," Emma practically grunted before picking up her phone. "Sheriff Swan speaking. Oh, hey, Archie, no problem. Hold on, let me just grab something to write with."

Emma picked up the nearest pen and pad but soon found it impossible to write at the angle in which she was sitting atop her desk. When her first attempt failed, she tried to hold the paper on her knees but that didn't seem to be doing much good, either.

As a solution, Emma suddenly plopped herself down on Regina's lap so that she could write on her desk.

"OK, go ahead, I'm ready now."

Tink watched Regina's inhale sharply when Emma landed on her. There had been a change, for certain, in Regina: This was not the oblivious woman from a few weeks ago. No, this was a Regina who appeared self-aware of the effect Emma's body was having on her own.

"What's the date of this again?" The Sheriff questioned. "Sorry, I know you asked me for this permit a million times. I've been a bit distracted lately."

Regina stared ahead into blonde hair, hypnotized by the long locks. She breathed in Emma's scent and looked like she wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around The Savior's torso.

"Got it," Emma confirmed as she finished writing. "I'll get this to you by the end of the day, I swear."

If Regina and Emma had a truly platonic relationship, then Regina _should_ have been able to hold a conversation while her "friend" was on her lap. But, instead, the former queen sat speechless acting as if Tink wasn't even in the room.

"Oh, yes, Regina's doing much better, thanks for asking. She's right here, actually. Of course I'll tell her. See you this afternoon."

Emma hung up the phone and turned to face Regina. "Archie says 'hi' and that he's glad you're OK."

"That was very nice of him."

Tink was sure they were close enough to taste each other's breath. The fact that they didn't crash their lips together right then and there seemed miraculous to her. But to them it was just part of the regular routine, this dance of unrequited love that was getting more predictable by the second.

"Anyway, count me in as a chaperone."

"Good to know my 'life-threatening' walk over here wasn't a waste," Regina retorted. "And Tink, I'm afraid Henry has signed you up for security, though I'm not quite sure why such intense security is required for children."

"Yeah, he asked me a few days ago; I told him it was no problem," Tink said, acting as nonchalant as she possibly could. "I guess they want to make sure kids aren't sneaking in alcohol or whatever."

"They're twelve!" Regina stated, outraged by the very concept.

"Exactly," Emma chuckled at her naivety. The Savior made no attempt to move, despite the fact that she no longer had a valid reason to be sitting on Regina's lap. "Some kids start early."

"Not Henry, I should hope."

"Nah, Regina, definitely not our Henry."

"And what, exactly, should I wear to this event? Because I'd like to avoid another last-minute wardrobe change when you pick me up."

"I'm picking you up?"

"No, sorry," Regina quickly back-tracked. "I didn't mean to assume…"

"I'll pick you up." Emma cut her off before she could protest further. "And, uh, just wear one of your mayor-type outfits. I think that'll work for this."

Just as Emma finished her instructions, David walked into the station; his brow instantly rose as he processed exactly where his daughter was seated.

"Hey," he greeted them with confusion in his voice.

"Hi," Emma replied. His arrival and subsequent reaction caused her to finally stand up. Tink could've sworn she saw Regina frown at the loss of contact. "What's going on?"

"I've actually been out questioning people all morning," the prince began. "And, Regina, it's good you're here because Eric swears he saw Neal bring you a drink."

"Oh," Regina recalled. When Emma originally tried to get information out of her, the former queen couldn't remember who had served her at the party. She insisted that her memories of the night were still fuzzy. "Now that you mention it, I believe that's correct."

"Someone must've gotten to it before he did," David concluded. "Unless you think…."

"That _he_ did it?" Regina surmised. "I find that hard to imagine. He's been sucking up to me non-stop to try to get time with Henry. And in terms of people in this town who have reason to hate me, he's low on the list."

"Well, maybe he blames you for losing Emma."

"Please," The Savior snorted. "That's a stretch."

"Is it?" her father challenged.

"Yes, but even if it wasn't, I personally don't think Neal has the balls to poison someone. And I've known him the longest, so I'm a good authority on this subject."

"Perhaps he saw us kiss and thought he should stop worrying about the pirate and eliminate me instead." Regina offered in jest.

_How many times was Regina going to bring up the kissing?_ Tink wondered. The fucked-up thing was her "joke" wasn't entirely far off: Neal _had_ essentially panicked at the thought of Regina as his competition.

"True," Emma laughed as her father openly rolled his eyes. "But I'd have to agree that we should probably assume someone got to the drink before he brought it to you."

"Alright," David agreed. "I'll guess keep asking around then."

"Thank you," Emma genuinely replied.

"Yes, David," Regina followed up. "I certainly appreciate your attention to the matter."

"No problem."

The prince and the former queen seemed engaged in a rather intense staring contest. David looked disapprovingly at Regina as if no words were needed to accuse her of being up to no-good. Regina stared right back silently challenging him to try and prove it.

Emma stood fumbling through paperwork, completely oblivious to the exchange.

Finally, David gave in and looked away. He muttered a brief "See you later" before exiting the building.

He really should've known: Regina never fails.

* * *

Henry had originally planned to spend the night of his school dance focusing on getting Grace to hang out with him. But more pressing matters had come up and, frankly, he was just fine with that. Operation Wings clearly took precedent.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Emma leaning against the wall of the decorated gymnasium by herself. And he just knew: This was his golden opportunity, the moment he had been waiting for.

"So," he casually approached her, "do you think my Mom is having a good time?"

"I guess," Emma shrugged. "I mean, as good of a time as she can have watching a bunch of kids."

"She's probably never been to a dance before so I want her to have fun and take her mind off _things_."

He had to sell this — and he had to do it right.

"Henry, did you ask us to chaperone so your Mom could have a night out?" Emma questioned, right on cue. "Because of what happened to her the last time she went out?"

"Maybe, yeah."

"Kid, if you're worried about her, you can talk to me about it. I know what happened to her is really scary, but I promise she is fine."

"I know she's physically fine. But I think she's sadder about it than she's letting on."

Lie: so completely and utterly false. His mother was so tough and strong that she seemed hardly phased by her near-death experience. But that's not what he needed Emma to believe.

"Really? You think she's upset about it?"

"Whenever she tries to be good or have fun it blows up in her face."

That part was true enough. And he was done being the person who made her feel that way.

"I guess it really does, huh?"

"At least she has us now, right?" he pushed. "We're not going to mess up like we did when we thought she killed Archie."

"No, we're not. Your Mom has definitely been nothing but awesome these past few months."

"You should ask her to dance. She probably hasn't been asked to dance in, like, forever. It would make her happy."

"I don't think your Mom wants to dance with me."

"Of course she does, you're her best friend. Who doesn't want to dance with their best friend?"

"Wait," Emma paused. "I'm your Mom's best friend?"

"Duh," he said, without missing a beat. "I don't know what happened between you two in Neverland but it makes me sort of glad I got kidnapped."

"Don't say crap like that!" Emma reprimanded. "I'm glad Regina and I are friends now, too. But we went through hell and back in Neverland and neither of us are grateful for what happened to you."

"Sorry," he muttered. "Where is she, anyway?"

"Your Mom? She went to the bathroom."

"Can you go check on her?"

"I somehow don't think she would appreciate the bathroom buddy system."

"But her name was on the chaperone list, which _anyone_ could get their hands on!" he feigned panic. "What if the person who wants to kill her is here? What if someone followed her to the bathroom? You're supposed to be watching out for her! How long has she been gone for?"

"Alright, relax; I'll go check on her," she soothed. "Just stop worrying and enjoy yourself with your friends like you're supposed to be doing. I promise you, I've got your Mom."

"Oh, I know you do."

That was, for certain, the most honest thing he had said to her all night.

* * *

"You're supposed to be chaperoning the children," Regina quipped when she exited the bathroom and saw Emma waiting for her outside. "Not me."

"Do you, uh, do you want to dance?"

Henry was a master manipulator to a degree that was slightly frightening. He had promised he would be able to get Emma to ask his Mom to dance and delivered a mere hour into the event. But something neither one of them could have ever prearranged was that the plan was unfolding in the hallway right in front of Tink, who was manning the main door.

"What?" Regina questioned, puzzled by the proposition.

"They're playing a slow song; do you want to dance?"

"In the hallway? Next to the bathroom?"

"Less embarrassment for Henry if we're out here, I figure."

"What's your angle? What, exactly, do you want?"

"Uh, just to dance with you?"

"I-I don't understand."

"If you have to think this hard about it that means you don't want to," Emma concluded. "Forget it—I was trying—friends can dance with friends. I thought it would be nice."

Regina frowned. She understood she had done something wrong but clearly had no clue _what_. Despite her lack of comprehension, she took a step closer to the blonde. "OK," she agreed. "Don't get upset."

Tink noted that Regina was highly affected by Emma's moods. Indeed, the woman who usually didn't give a second thought about insulting or demeaning those around her was instantly dismayed by the possibility that Emma's feelings were even slightly hurt.

"I'm not upset," Emma unconvincingly insisted as she placed her hands on the brunette's hips. "Is that OK?"

"Yes, that's fine."

"You have to put your arms around my neck or this isn't going to work very well."

"Oh," Regina processed as she followed the directions. "Like that?"

"Yeah, that's perfect," Emma assured her. "I still can't believe you wore flats tonight, by the way. You're such a smart-ass."

Tink had noticed instantly, of course, that Regina was inches shorter than usual. She was wearing black ballet-flats with a skin-tight gray dress. The fairy could only assume they were the very flats Emma had referred to the other day at the Station.

"I was simply following your sound advice, dear."

For a few seconds, they swayed together silently. Regina, for her part, had obviously never danced like this in her life. But she kept up with Emma enough to make it work in an endearingly awkward kind of way.

"I really like this song," Emma told her.

Tink had limited experience with this world's music. But Emma often played it during their shifts. The fairy recognized this song as "Give me Love" by someone she could've sworn was called Ed Sheeran.

"I'm afraid I've never heard it."

"Do you even listen to music?"

"Not often," Regina admitted.

"Will you? If I send you good stuff?"

"I'd be willing to give your suggestions a try."

"Cool, I'll make you a playlist; gives me something to do besides paperwork when it's slow at work."

"Said the Sheriff to her _boss_."

"Right," Emma laughed. "So, uh, just pretend you didn't hear that."

"This isn't actually dancing, you know; this is more like a moving hug."

"Not how they do it in the Enchanted Forest, I take it?"

"Not quite. It's much more choreographed there."

"Well, I'm sorry if it's not up to your royal standards."

"No, that's not what I meant; I was just observing. This is much more genuine."

"It _is _genuine," Emma promised. And to Tink it seemed like the oath was about much more than the dance.

Regina smiled from ear-to-ear before resting her head against Emma's chest as they began to silently sway together once more

Tink was pulled out of the hypnotic trance of watching the duo by a now-familiar voice. "Hi," Snow said, her own eyes drawn to the two women.

"Hey."

"I was wondering where the chaperones went."

"It looks like they've decided to have a dance of their own."

For a few moments they both observed Emma and Regina, who were completely unaware that anyone was remotely near them.

"About that bridge you mentioned before," Snow practically whispered. "You didn't mean _if_ we cross it, did you? You meant when we cross it and you meant we're going to cross it really soon."

"Yes," Tink confessed, recognizing immediately the woman was talking about her daughter and her nemesis getting together. "I did mean when."

"I have some _serious _soul-searching to do, don't I?"

"I think you really do."

* * *

Later that night, Tink sat on her bed holding the enchanted dreamcatcher Henry had given her.

This was the part of the plan to which she originally protested —the element of if it that made her truly nervous.

To her, it was not all that much better than what Neal had done. And it was definitely, 100%, an invasion of privacy. But Henry was damn persuasive and had somehow convinced her that it was entirely necessary if they were going to make any progress. He insisted that they needed to know how Regina and Emma felt about each other; this was supposed to be a sure-fire way to figure it out.

"_How exactly does it work?" Tink asked her young partner. _

"_So, first, you have to whisper both of my moms' names into it," Henry explained. "Then, apparently, it will show them thinking about each other and it will make you feel what they feel in that moment." _

"_How did you even get this?" _

"_That's not important." _

"_Yes, it's very important. This is a few different levels of sketchy and I want to know what I'm getting myself into." _

"_I told Gold I needed it for something. I have to bring it back to him tomorrow." _

"_What did you tell him you needed it for?" _

"_To see if a girl liked me." _

"_And he just gave it to you?" _

"_He said it's totally harmless." _

_But "harmless" was exactly the word Neal had used to describe the type of magic with which he almost killed Regina. She didn't want to end up in that same position. _

"_Still, Henry, it makes me really nervous. Are you totally sure it's safe?" _

"_Gold thinks I'm the one using it and he wouldn't hurt me. Being related to everyone in this town means I can pretty much trust everyone and get what I want." _

"_Brat." _

"_Maybe, but in this instance it's helping us, right? So stop complaining about it." _

"_Fine, hand it over." _

"_The only thing is you're going to have to do this part alone because there's no way I'm going to get away with sneaking out the night of the dance. My moms want to go out for ice cream after." _

"_Yeah, it's definitely too risky for you to pull a stunt like that." _

"_Right, so it's up to you." _

"_But what if they're not thinking of each other?" _

"_Please," Henry scoffed. "Unlikely." _

Tink closed her eyes and took a deep breath before holding out the dreamcatcher and firmly stating: "Regina Mills and Emma Swan."

* * *

The first thing Tinkerbelle saw was Regina walking around her bedroom in her silk pajamas. The former queen bent down and picked up a zip-up hoodie from her floor. Tink recognized the garment immediately as one belonging to Emma.

"I'm so glad I now have _two_ children to clean up after," Regina spoke aloud to no one. "When did this even get here?"

But instead of putting the sweatshirt away, or leaving it out to return to the blonde, Regina sniffed the hoodie and hugged it close. She brought the material to her face and rubbed it gently against her cheek.

And then, without a moment of hesitation, she put it on. It looked ridiculous, of course, in contrast to the silk bottoms. But that seemed irrelevant to Regina.

As the brunette slipped her arms into the top, Tink felt warm, safe, content and happy all at once. More than that: She felt _hope._

And hope was one thing Regina hadn't had in a long time. It was enough for the fairy to know she could push her friend in Emma's direction.

Because maybe Regina couldn't identify her own emotions and she definitely didn't know what to do about them. But Tink was now sure she had them.

And, for now, that was all that really mattered.

* * *

The next think Tink saw through the dreamcatcher was Emma in bed, under the covers, eyes shut.

The fairy was, at first, admittedly quite confused.

If Emma was asleep, why would the dreamcatcher bother to show that? Was The Savior _dreaming _of Regina? Because, truthfully, that didn't seem like helpful information in the slightest.

But then Tink _felt _something, her stomach churned as a surge of heat drove straight to her core. And, damn, if it all didn't suddenly made sense.

Tink suddenly realized that The Savior wasn't asleep at all. No, Emma had one hand grasping tightly onto her sheets, the other under the blankets quickly moving up and down, over and over.

"_Re—gin—a_," Emma breathily panted. "Fuck, Regina, please."

"NO!" Tink violently threw the dreamcatcher into the wall when she realized what was happening. She jumped up on her bed and yelled. She seriously did not sign up to watch porn, especially not one featuring a solo-performance by her co-worker/friend.

What Tink felt was, undeniably, desire. But it wasn't the kind that accompanied pure lust. It was, instead, the type of yearning that accompanied a soul-crushing desperation for your soul mate.

"Damn it, Emma," she cursed, now certain of how deep The Savior's feelings ran. "I fucking knew it."

But she didn't have time to pat herself on the back. Truthfully, the only thing she could think of in that moment: Thank God Henry _hadn't_ been there.

* * *

Tink had highly considered taking the next day off, but she was more afraid of behaving suspiciously than she was of facing Emma. She was so desperate not to get caught that she was petrified of doing anything slightly out of the ordinary.

But acting normal around The Savior was proving nearly impossible. And twenty minutes into their shift, the blonde had already noticed.

"You're super quiet today," Emma glanced over at her with concern. "Is something wrong?"

"I'm fine," she promised, barely able to make eye contact. "I didn't sleep well last night."

"Was something keeping you up?"

"I, uh, not really."

_Yeah, _she thought_, just the fact that I was mentally scarred for life, or the fact that two idiots hold my fate as a fairy in their damn hands, or trying to figure out how to explain it all to your son. _

"Do you want to go home early? There doesn't seem to be much going on here, anyway."

"No, it's OK."

"Well, just let me know if you change your mind."

Emma's phone vibrated against her desk and the way her eyes lit up when she looked at the caller ID made it obvious who it was.

"Hi," Emma cheerily picked up. "Wait, Regina, slow down; Neal didn't show up? What time was he supposed to be there?"

As Tink watched Emma speak, she suddenly noticed something—and she wondered how on earth she hadn't noticed it before: black ink on the Savior's wrist.

"No one is going to blame you because Neal can't remember when to pick up his kid," Emma continued. "Seriously, this is _classic_. I haven't heard a word from him in days."

_What in the ever-loving hell was on Emma's wrist?_ Tink pondered. Because really, if there was a goddamn lion tattoo under that stupid brown rope she wore, Tink was definitely going to flip her lid.

"And if he shows up two hours late tell him that if he can't be punctual, he can just forget it," Emma firmly stated. "I know, right? I _am_ starting to sound like you. I think it's a good thing though."

Tink stood up and tentatively approached Emma's desk. She absolutely had to get a closer look.

"Alright; just enjoy your time with Henry and don't stress about it. I'll see you both later."

Emma hung up and immediately noticed Tink standing oddly close to her. "Uh, hi?"

"What's on your wrist?" the fairy forcefully inquired.

"A tattoo."

"A tattoo?"

"Do they not have them in fairytales, or something? It's just ink; it's not a huge deal or anything."

"I know what tattoos are!" she snapped. "What is yours?"

"Why are you, like, practically yelling at me right now?"

"I'm not." Tink took a deep breath and tried to regain her composure. "Can you just please tell me what your tattoo is?"

"It's a flower."

"Oh," Tink exhaled. She truthfully didn't know if she felt better or worse. "OK."

"A dandelion, if you want to be technical about it."

"A dandelion," she repeated. "No, it's not."

"Yes, it is. They grew in the backyard of my last foster home. I got the tattoo when I was 18 to remind myself I would never have to go back; that I was finally free."

"_You_ have a tattoo of a dande_lion_ on your _wrist_? Because you wanted freedom?"

"Yes?"

Tink burst into hysterical, somewhat delusional, laughter. It was completely rude and inappropriate but she couldn't seem to help it.

"Seriously, what the hell is your problem?" Emma demanded. "Why are you laughing at me? That's a really personal story."

"No, I'm sorry, it's not you. It's just…you know what? Forget it. I have to go."

"What? Why? Where are you going?"

"You were right, I'm sleep deprived," Tink lied. "I should just go home. I'll see you, uh, later or whenever."

There was no way in hell Tinkerbell was going home. There was a certain Blue Fairy she desperately needed to talk to.


	7. Chapter 7

**Posting this from the after-life because 3x13 killed me. A lot goes down in this chapter so I really hope you enjoy! I'm now thinking the story will probably go to about 11 chapters (remember that time I thought it was going to be 3?). Let me know what you think! Thank you for reading!**

* * *

It was easy enough for Tink to locate Blue; the fairy was notorious for eating lunch at Granny's at the same exact time every day. Tink walked into the establishment and made no apologizes for promptly interrupting the insufferable woman's conversation with Dr. Hopper.

"We need to talk."

"Hello," Blue greeted with obvious annoyance. "What about, Green?"

"Alone," Tink demanded, nearly yanking the fairy out of her seat. "We're going outside."

"But I'm in the middle of—"

Tink didn't have time or energy to waste — she could feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins and could taste how close she was to earning back her wings. She completely ignored Blue's objections as she dragged the fairy through the lunch crowd and out the door.

"That was quite rude," Blue scolded, once outside. "What, pray tell, has you in such a tizzy?"

"I have important questions about the whole Regina soul-mate situation."

"Ah, of course. I should have realized that's what this is all about. Go ahead, then— I'll answer what I can."

"What should I do when I'm pretty damn sure I know who her soul mate is? How do I actually get my wings?"

"Your wings will return when both Regina and her soul mate accept that they are meant to be together, when there is an act of True Love."

Tink immediately thought back to the night of Ariel's party — Regina and Emma had kissed but seemingly nothing magical occurred.

"Is it possible that Regina has kissed her soul mate but that it wasn't True Love's Kiss?"

"Of course," Blue confirmed. "True Love's Kiss only happens when both parties are aware of their tied destiny."

"So, basically, if they're both complete morons True Love's Kiss doesn't work."

"Precisely."

"And about the pixie dust…I know it's never supposed to be wrong but is it possible that it got, uh, confused?"

"I'm not sure what you mean by that."

"Let's say – hypothetically - someone's soul mate was in another realm or another time even. Could the pixie dust have gotten messed up because of that?"

"I suppose, theoretically, that's possible."

"Right, OK, good."

Tink was certain that Emma's tattoo was the missing piece of the puzzle, which meant she wasn't a bad fairy at all. She had just accepted the world's most-impossible case, one it would take nearly three decades to crack. After all, how could pixie dust lead Regina to someone who had yet to be born?

"One last question: Do _you_ know who Regina is supposed to end up with?"

"Yes."

"For the record, I think it's pretty messed up that you never bothered to help her even though you had that information."

"I only found out recently," the fairy defended. "I admit that I've never had much interest in helping the Queen. I didn't think she was capable of love — let alone True Love. But then I…"

"Were you surprised?" Tink interrupted, uninterested in the excuse. "When you found out who it was?"

"Yes," Blue whispered before a miniscule smile tugged at her lips. "But, yet, at the same time, I wasn't surprised at all. I know that probably doesn't make sense to you…"

"No, I think I know _exactly_ what you mean."

Blue nodded and turned on her heels, returning to the diner without another word.

Left alone and in awe of the situation, Tinkerbell suddenly heard a beeping noise coming from her pocket. She took out her cell and saw that she had missed seven calls in the past five minutes.

They were all from Regina.

* * *

"Hello?" Tink called out as she ran into her friend's kitchen, fearing the absolute worst. "Are you OK?"

"Yes," Regina softly replied. The woman stood regally by the sink looking out the window. There was something unexplainably eerie about the image— it sent a chill running down Tink's spine.

"Why'd you call? You scared me half to death. I sprinted here. I'm not in good-enough shape to be sprinting."

"We need to talk," the former queen stated, turning around and stalking toward her like she was prey. "Please, have a seat."

"Uh, alright." Tink did as she was told but was thrown off by the unusually cold demeanor. "Why are you being so formal?"

"I received Henry's cell phone bill in the mail today. It increased drastically this month and I was curious as to why," Regina explained as she dramatically slammed a piece of paper on the table. "I took a closer look and saw whom he was messaging. This is _your_ number."

"Oh, right, yeah. I guess it is."

Internally, Tink panicked. She had no idea technology could betray her so severely. Henry should have warned her that his mother had such easy access to this information.

"Why are you spending this much time talking to my son?"

"What are you accusing me of here?" she replied, hoping to buy herself some time to come up with a reasonable answer.

"I don't know yet. That's precisely what I'm asking you to explain."

Tink rapidly came to the conclusion that she couldn't get out of the situation entirely; the evidence was far too damning. But that didn't mean she had to compromise the details of Operation Wings, either.

"Look, Henry found out that I'm searching for your soul mate."

"How?"

"Your son is very persistent."

"That doesn't account for this number of messages: dozens of them every day for weeks."

"He wanted to help me and I didn't know how to tell him no. He loves you so much. He just wants you to be happy. The two of us talk about people in town who we think might have potential. I swear, it's completely harmless."

"Henry is a _child_ and should not be burdened with the responsibility of trying to find someone for me," Regina fervently argued. "But what's worse is that I trusted you and you _betrayed_ me. You should've told me the second Henry found out about your quest. I'm his mother. _I_ get to decide what he does and doesn't know."

Regina's relentless ferocity served as a thin veil for her maternal insecurities. The way in which she claimed domain over her son only served to highlight how unsure she was that she had it.

"I didn't see it that way — as betraying you," Tink clarified. "I thought Henry would be a good asset because he knows you better than anyone."

"But once he gets an idea in his head, he doesn't know how to let it go. Now he won't relent until I'm with my 'soul mate' and we don't even know if that person exists. You saw what happened in Neverland. I love Henry but he is completely reckless — he'll stop at nothing, a trait he unfortunately picked up from both of his mothers."

"I'm sorry," she offered in reply. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"Your apology does not help me rectify the situation."

"I don't know what else to say."

"You will stay here," Regina commanded. "We are ending this right now."

"How are we 'ending' this?"

"Henry," the brunette called up her staircase. "Please come down here for a moment."

They sat together in silence as Henry descended the stairs and entered the kitchen with a clueless smile. "Hey, Tink," he said, missing the tension in the air. "What's up, Mom?"

"Did you know that your cell phone bill practically tripled this month?"

"Oh, no, I'm sorry. I could give you back my allowance money if you want."

"That won't be necessary," Regina informed him. "I looked at the bill because I assumed you needed a larger data plan in order to speak with Emma. I was surprised to learn you were talking to Tink. That's why I asked her to come over; she has confessed what you two have been up to lately."

"Don't be mad," Henry quickly pleaded, looking just as panicked as his partner-in-crime. "Please?"

"I'm not mad; I'm worried. I don't want you to be disappointed. I've spent enough time letting you down and I don't want you to get your hopes up."

"I'm not going to be disappointed, Mom. I know you must be freaked out by the idea that Emma is your soul mate…"

Tink should've seen it coming.

It was predictable how quickly all of their hard work and progress imploded in front of their eyes. In the end, they were their own downfall, and now they would have to pick up the pieces as best they could.

"_Excuse me?" _

"I thought…I thought you said Tink just told you."

"I hadn't mentioned that part," the fairy groaned, wishing more than anything she could disappear into thin air. "I left that detail out."

"Why, on earth, would anyone think that Emma is my soul mate?"

"We don't think," Henry defiantly crossed his arms. "We _know_."

"Honey— no." Regina bent down slightly to meet his eye line and Tink couldn't tell if the former-queen was about to scream or cry. "I'm afraid you're terribly mistaken."

"Mom, seriously, it's OK. I thought it was weird at first, too. But it makes a lot of sense. Maybe you just need to read the book again. That's what I did."

"What I need to do is talk to Tink alone. You and I will discuss this further when she leaves."

"Don't be mad at her. She was trying to help you and until now she was doing a _really_ good job. Just think about how happy you've been lately because of all the time you've been spending with Emma."

"Go upstairs," Regina instructed, clearly no longer asking nicely. "Now."

Henry ran out of the room but not before giving Tink an apologetic look that nearly broke her heart into a million pieces. Somehow, she felt like she had miserably failed them both.

"Are you mentally ill?" Regina turned to her once they were alone; the fury radiating from her was positively tangible. "How irresponsible do you have to be to allow my son to believe his birth mother is my soul mate? He's going to be devastated and I will once again be the cause."

Regina's denial was almost comical. Tink decided there was truly only one way to deal with it; it was time to stop using kid gloves and walking on egg shells.

"I think we both know you and Emma are more than just friends."

"You're right — we _are_ more than just friends — we are mothers trying to do right by our son."

"No, it's more than that."

"You don't know what it was like before," Regina snapped, pointing a finger at her. "Emma and I were constantly at each other's throats and it was Henry who suffered. Just because we have come to an understanding doesn't mean that…"

"So that's all it is between you and Emma? An understanding? For Henry? That's really what you're going with? Because that doesn't explain half of what goes on between you two on a daily basis."

"You have been on this ridiculous idea since the night we went to the Rabbit Hole, haven't you? When you seemed so very fascinated that Emma accidentally fell asleep in my bed."

"And exactly how many times has she 'accidentally' fallen asleep in your bed since then?"

"Enough," Regina fumed. "You're seeing what you want to see because you are desperate to get your wings back."

"That's bullshit. You almost passed out when Emma sat on you at the station the other day. And at the dance you were holding each other so close I couldn't tell where one of you ended and the other began."

"I can't believe I was stupid enough to befriend you again. All you ever do is stick your nose where it doesn't belong and ruin the lives of your innocent victims. But that's what fairies are best at, I suppose."

The accusation hit her hard — Tink had done absolutely nothing but try to help this woman from the moment they had met. And here she was, yet again, being accused of purposely trying to harm her.

"Yeah, except there's one problem with that, Regina: I'm _not_ a fairy. Do I need to remind you why?"

"Because you were terrible at it the first time and, apparently, you're even worse at it now. I didn't think that was possible but here we are. Thank you for proving me wrong."

"You can deflect and blame me all you want. It doesn't change the fact that you're in love with her," Tink yelled, all of her frustrations surfacing at once. "It doesn't change who you're supposed to end up with — Emma Fucking Swan. I know she's not exactly who you expected, but she's who you got. Now you have to grow the hell up and deal with it."

"Get out of my home," Regina screamed back, the vein in her forehead throbbing out of control. "Stay away from me and - more importantly - stay away from my son."

"Fine, whatever, that won't be a problem."

"And while you're at it, stay the hell away from Emma, too."

"You know I can't do that. She's my boss."

"Well, then, I'll suppose you'll just have to quit."

"No, I've earned my job."

"Then I'll simply get Emma to fire you," Regina threatened, looking like a despotwhowas thriving on the power trip. "In your current state, I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to convince her that you're unfit for duty."

"For someone who finds my theory so incredibly absurd, you seem awfully worried that Emma might find out about it."

"That's because I will not have you ruin the_ only_ friendship that means anything to me."

"Right — well, clearly our friendship means nothing."

"Yes, that is quite clear."

"You are an unbelievably self-centered bitch who is _never _going to be happy. I hope you know that."

"Fly away moth," Regina mocked in a sing-song voice. "Oh, wait, you can't. Because you don't have your wings and you _never_ will."

"Fuck you."

"Enjoy your _walk _home."

* * *

The fact that Tink ran directly into Emma in Regina's driveway shouldn't have surprised her in the slightest. Because, really, where else would the Sheriff go after her shift? The irony made her nauseous.

"Hey," Emma gently placed her hand on Tink's shoulder when they inevitably crossed paths. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Move." Tink pushed by her. "I can't deal with you right now."

"What's going on? Is Regina OK?"

Tink was a visible heap of tears and rage, but Emma's brain only had one concern: the possibility that something had happened to Regina.

"Not to worry, your wife is just fine," Tink laughed manically. "Well, besides her incessant need to self-destruct. But I've decided that is no longer my problem. I'd rather go my entire life without my wings than have to put up with her for one more second."

"My wife? Your wings? Huh?" Emma looked at her like she had lost her mind. "Hey, weren't you supposed to be going home to sleep?"

As she spoke, Tink noticed that Sheriff was holding a rectangular box of chocolates wrapped beautifully in a purple bow. "Who are those for?"

"Regina. It's movie night; they're her favorite."

"Right, of course; I truly hope you enjoy your life of shared-delusion."

The oblivious and speechless Savior stood before her as she tried to follow the conversation. To her, it was all out of context and impossible to understand.

"Emma!" Regina called out from the doorway. The brunette quite obviously wanted to prevent any further conversation between the two women standing in front of her house. "Come inside, dear; it's cold."

"Just go to her," Tink instructed, when Emma seemed hesitant to walk away. "We wouldn't want you to upset the Mrs."

"I _really_ think you should get some sleep."

It wasn't sleep Tink needed. A bottle of wine seemed like a much more appropriate solution.

* * *

As Tink marched down Main Street, she finally allowed the tears to fall freely from her eyes. She just needed to make it back to her room and then she could crawl into bed and sulk for the rest of her life about how she had gotten mixed up with the Evil Queen two times too many.

"Tink?" Neal abruptly stopped her. She had seen him coming and had tried, but failed, to avoid him. "Whoa, what's going on? Are you crying?"

"What is this, Asshole Day? Leave me alone — you're seriously the last person I want to see right now."

"You look like you're about to murder someone."

"Yes, and if you're not careful it might just be you."

"Hey." He grabbed her elbow, holding her place. "Seriously, what's wrong?"

"I should've let you poison her," Tink ranted, unable to stop herself. "Actually, no, I should've just done it my damn self."

"Regina?" he surmised. "You don't mean that."

"Yes, I do. She is the most infuriating person I have ever known. And truthfully Emma isn't much better. They deserve each other."

"So they're still in denial about their feelings, I take it?"

"Wait," she paused, realizing instantly that something was very off with Neal's statement. "Aren't you supposed to think Emma's still in love with you?"

"There's a chance I wasn't entirely honest with you."

"Of course you weren't," Tink snorted. "I swear to God this town should be called Everyone-is-Full-of-Shit-Brooke."

Neal couldn't help but to let out a brief, sympathetic chuckle. "I'm sorry," he offered, "but that was actually pretty funny."

"Let's just hear it: What did you lie to me about?"

Neal looked to his feet and then back to her. "I wanted to know if Emma was my true love," he began. "The Blue Fairy, well, let's just say she owed me a favor from some stuff she pulled when I was a kid. I asked her to show me Emma's soul mate. I decided if it was Hook, I would let her go."

"And Blue agreed?"

"Yeah, she used pixie dust. We followed it straight to the park where Regina was with Henry. At first I thought it meant Henry was Emma's True Love — since they broke the curse. But the pixie dust was clearly pointing at Regina; Blue looked like she was going to pass out."

"Oh," Tink replied in awe. A few hours ago the story would've sent her through the roof with joy. She was being given rock-solid evidence that she was correct. But after her conflict with Regina, it only felt like salt in her wound.

"I was obviously upset that it wasn't me," Neal continued. "But I was also admittedly worried about it being Regina. All I really know about the Evil Queen is that she was trained by my father. I couldn't help but wonder if, maybe, Regina was trying out a new revenge tactic. I wanted to make sure she genuinely cares about Emma. The rest of the story I told you is true: I thought I was using truth serum and I obviously wasn't, then I completely fucking panicked. I thought I had murdered Emma's soul mate when all I wanted to do was help."

"But why didn't you just tell me that night?"

"Blue told me about your search. She said you had to figure it out on your own or you couldn't earn your wings. I didn't want to mess it up for you like I mess up everything else."

"Then why are you telling me now?"

"Because you clearly _have_ figured it out on your own, right?"

"Yeah, but it doesn't even matter. They're never going to get their shit together."

"You can't give up now," Neal encouraged, "not when you_ know_ you're right."

"I don't have a choice. Regina basically told me to drop dead, and I think Emma might try to commit me to an institution."

"They'll come around."

"How do you know that?"

"True Love," he mused. "I've heard something about how it's the most powerful magic of all."

* * *

By 10:00 PM that night Tink was already in bed under her covers half-unconscious. She was so out of it, in fact, that when her cell phone rang she automatically picked it up off her dresser despite the fact she vowed not to speak with anyone for the rest of the day.

"Hello," Tink mumbled. If the call was of any importance professionally, she was completely screwed; she had succeeded in her endeavor to inhale a bottle of red wine.

"I kissed Emma!" a hysterical and familiar voice informed.

For a moment, Tink was sure she was dreaming. After the hell she had been through that day, her brain must've concocted this scenario. But when looked down at the phone it clearly showed that none other than Regina Mills was on the line.

"Is this some kind of fucking joke to get back at me, Regina? Are you really this petty?"

"Open your goddamn door," the former queen seethed, the vicious demand coincided with a violent knocking sound. "Immediately."

Tink jumped out of bed and, for a moment, wondered if this was how she would die: at the hands of the Evil Queen in Granny's Bed and Breakfast. _Really_, she thought to herself, _I should've just stayed in Neverland._

She figured there was no use fighting it, it's not like she could prevent the woman from getting inside. The fairy took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Does it look like I'm joking?"

It certainly didn't. A frazzled Regina Mills stood before her in her pajamas and robe, hair out of place and smeared lipstick. There was no way in hell she walked in public in this condition; she must've used magic to materialize outside the door.

"What happened?" Tink asked in a state of shock.

"You happened!" Regina shouted, pushing her way into the room. "_You_ put ridiculous ideas in my head and confused the hell out of me and made me act like a complete fool!"

"OK, it's my fault. But that doesn't actually explain anything."

"We were watching a movie and Emma was sprawled out on top of me. I—I couldn't stop thinking about the things you and Henry said. So when she went to leave I just kissed her."

"How'd she react?"

"She stuck her tongue down my throat. But then I pulled away."

"Why?"

"Because my son's birth mother was squeezing my ass!"

Tink couldn't believe her ears—the detailed information was coming from the very same woman who had spent the better part of the afternoon degrading her.

"After I broke it off, Emma ran away without saying anything. I don't know how I'm ever going to face her again. You need to fix this."

Even more than that, Regina was once again asking for her help. As much as she wanted to turn her away, she couldn't bring herself to do it.

"Well, I think the first thing you need to do is relax."

"Shit!" Regina jumped out of her skin as her phone vibrated in her hands. She tossed the device across the room as if it was on fire. It landed on top of Tink's mattress.

"OK, that's the opposite of relaxing."

"That was her!" Regina explained as she pointed to her phone. "She's messaging me;_ do_ something."

"If you don't take a deep breath you're going to have a heart attack," Tink warned before she walked over to her bed and picked up Regina's cell. "And then none of this will matter because you'll be dead."

"I actually might prefer that solution," the brunette deadpanned. "What did she say?"

"She asked if you're mad at her," Tink read aloud. "Are you?"

"I'm not sure how I could be when I technically started it."

"Right, so what do you want to say back?"

Before Regina could answer, their attention was drawn to a meek knock on the door. "Tink," Emma's voice accompanied the sound. "Sorry, uh, but are you in there?"

"What the hell is she doing?" Regina whispered in a frenzy. "Why is she here?"

"I don't know but if I had to guess I would say she's also here to freak out."

"I am poofing myself home."

"No, you're not going anywhere. I swear to God if you leave, I will tell her everything. And I mean _everything_."

Regina shot her a death glare but seemed to understand that she didn't have the option to leave. Tink knew this was one hell of a last chance. But she'd be damned if wasn't going to take it. It was now or never, and it felt like everything was on the line.

"I think I fucked up with Regina," Emma continued speaking into the door. "I still don't know what's going on with you. I truthfully don't understand half of what happened today. Can I please just come in?"

Tink walked back to the door and opened it. As soon as she did, Emma's eyes went wide in shock as she took in the unexpected sight of Regina.

"You didn't do anything wrong," the former queen said in greeting.

"Are you sure?" Emma let herself into the room, walking right by Tink. "Because I feel horrible."

"It was my fault and I'm sorry."

"So, then, we're cool?"

"We are."

"That's a relief."

"Oh my God," Tink huffed at the ridiculous exchange. She was not about to let them get away with it. "You two are so_ not _cool. You are actually the exact opposite of cool."

"What do you mean?" Emma questioned. "Are you're saying she _is _mad at me?"

"No, what I'm saying is that you two have feelings for each other and it's making my life a living hell. You're going to deal with this before I kill us all in an extremely violent murder/suicide."

"That is entirely false," Regina protested as all of her walls went flying back up. "Drop your nonsense this instant."

"I can prove it, you know," Tink boasted, suddenly feeling smug. A last-ditch effort required all the ammunition she had, and she was more than prepared to use it. It's not like she had anything left to lose.

"You will do no such thing."

"Oh, yeah?" she challenged before turning to the Savior. "Emma: You used magic the night of Ariel's party because you _wanted_ to kiss Regina. You used magic so the bottle would land on her."

"Uh, no, I didn't."

"Yes, you did. Maybe you didn't do it on purpose, but I felt it happen."

"Emma can barely light a candle and you expect me to believe that she dictated the direction of a bottle?" Regina mocked. "That's laughable."

"Well, apparently she's good enough with magic to revive you from nearly dying of poisoning. Funny how her magic is crap until it comes to _you_."

"I will have you know that the reason Emma was able to save me was because…"

"And you're one to talk," Tink interrupted the predictable denial. "You were using magic during that whole game. And you are an asshole, for real, because you let me kiss Archie. But when it was Emma's turn, you didn't stop the bottle from landing on you. Why? _Because you also wanted to kiss her._ Who the hell knows what would've happened if we hadn't stopped the game before it was your turn."

"Is that true?" Emma inquired, sounding hopeful and confused all at once. "Regina, what would've happened if you had gotten a turn?"

Regina froze like a deer in headlights as Tink and Emma stared at her and waited for her to make a move. The brunette looked physically and mentally exhausted. Tink wondered if, perhaps, she had finally been worn down enough to cave into her emotions.

Remaining completely silent, Regina walked over to Tink's dresser and picked up the empty bottle of wine. She then hesitantly approached Emma, getting within mere inches of her face. Using her magic she hoisted the bottle into the air and made it spin round and round until it finally stopped and pointed straight at Emma.

"That,"she stated before lowering the bottle down to the ground. "That is what would have happened,"

"Really?"

"Yes," Regina sighed. "Of course."

"The only reason I agreed to play that stupid game was so that I could have a shot at kissing you," Emma admitted, fueled by Regina's bold gesture. "I guess my magic knew what I wanted to happen."

"But that doesn't change the fact that we cannot do this," Regina contended. "Your parents wouldn't survive us sleeping together. I'm sure you don't want their death on your hands. And not to mention how it would complicate things with Henry…"

"Wait, let's be clear: I'm not interested in a one-night-stand to deal with our, uh, tension."

"You do not want something more with the Evil Queen. I can promise you that."

"You don't know what I want," Emma told her, unfazed by the reference to Regina's former self. "Is that really all you want? One night?"

"What I want is irrelevant."

"It's not irrelevant to me."

"Stop doing that."

"Doing what?"

"Being so…_Emma. _You are maddening and naïve. I will not ruin what we have worked so hard to build for our son. I already told you I can't lose my family."

And there it was — an admission Tink had suspected all along. Regina did, indeed, know exactly what she had said to Emma in the car when she had been all too close to death.

"Wait, you remember?"

"Yes."

"You said you didn't," Emma recalled, flabbergasted by the deception. "You blatantly lied to me."

"I was embarrassed."

"Because you admitted that you consider me family?"

"Because I admitted that I need you. And the amount of damage you could do with that information is unimaginable. You could destroy me."

"Regina." The Savior, eyes ablaze with passion, grabbed the brunette's hands and joined them with her own. "Would you like to go out to dinner with me?"

"You're not listening, you idiot."

"I _am _listening — I just don't see what choice we have. You don't want to ruin things? That's great but they're already ruined."

"How so?"

"Because the only time I'm not picturing ripping off your clothes and taking you against the nearest surface is when I'm wondering how it's humanly possible for you to be so amazingly good to me."

"Oh."

"Yeah, so, how's _that_ for embarrassing?" Emma quipped. "I need you, too. And Tink is right about one thing: We can't ignore this anymore."

"Maybe."

"So, are you free tomorrow night or what?"

"Yes."

"Alright, good." The blonde reluctantly let go of Regina's hands. "I'm going to leave now because this has been a really crazy night and I'd like to end it on a good note."

Emma turned to exit, but Regina promptly called out after her.

"Wait a minute."

"Hey, look, you already said yes and I've got a witness. Besides Tink threatened to kill us all and she seemed pretty serious so I don't think it's a good idea to change your mind."

"No, it's not that," Regina assured her. "What should I wear?"

Emma's face broke out into a huge grin: Regina had given them a hint of normalcy in an entirely abnormal night. It was a sign that although some things had undoubtedly shifted dramatically between them others would remain the same.

"The red dress from the night of Ariel's party — the one I stupidly made you change out of."

"Does that mean we're going to…what was that strange place you referenced?"

"The Four Seasons?" Emma laughed. "Yeah, something like that."

"Very well."

Emma approached the former queen one last time and gently wiped the still-smeared lipstick off her upper-lip. "I'll pick you up at 8," she promised before finally taking her leave.

"I'm sorry," Regina whispered when they were left alone with the aftermath of the intense confrontation. "For treating you so terribly."

Tink didn't quite understand what it was about Regina and Emma that she related to so fiercely or sympathized with so much. Perhaps it was that nothing had ever come easy to either one of them. Whatever the case, she couldn't seem to bring herself to stay mad, not even after all the hurtful things Regina had thrown her way. Instead, Tink's heart felt like it had grown three sizes just from watching the women interact.

"I forgive you."

"I don't know if I can do this."

"You can; you're ready."

"For a date? Maybe. But I'm not ready to consider what you were suggesting earlier. And if you tell Emma she's going to…"

It's not like Tink could stay mad even if she wanted to—because she knew one thing for certain: if it had taken this much effort to get Regina and Emma to agree to a first date, she could only imagine how long it would be until they realized they were soul mates. She was pretty sure their journey was only beginning.

"I'm not going to tell her anything," Tink promised. "It's all up to you guys now."


End file.
